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PLAIN 



SERMONS 



«JUr Spirants* 



BY THE 

REV. T. T.'OASTLBMAN, 

SECTOR OP TRINITY CHURCH, STAUNTON, VA., 
AND BY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH. 



WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED BY REQUEST OF THE RT. REV. WILLIAM MEADE, D. D., 
AND THE CONVOCATION OF CENTRAL VIRGINIA. 



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"NEW YORK: 
STANFORD & DELISSER, 

637 BROADWAY. 

1858. 






V 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1850, "by 

Bef. T. T. CASTLEMAX 

In the Clerk's Office of the United States Court for the Western 
District of Virginia. 



CONTENTS. 



PREFACE 7 

SERMON I. 
To Masters and Mistresses, 9 

Colossians iv. 1. — Masters give unto your servants that 
which is just and equal, knowing that ye also have a 
Master in heaven. 

SERMON II. 

The Christian's Life a Life of Prater, 22 

1 Thes. v. 17. — Pray without ceasing. 

SERMON III. 
Servants should Obey their Masters, 35 

Col. iii. 22. — Servants obey in all things your masters. 

SERMON IV. 

Sin a Disease — Cured by Christ, 48 

John iii. 14, 15. — And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the 
wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up: 
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but 
have everlasting life. 

SERMON V. 

The Sleeping Sinner Awakened, 63 

Jonah i. 6. — "What meanest thou, Oh sleeper ? Arise, call 
upon thy God ; if so be that God will think upon us, that 
we perish not. 

SERMON VI. 

Jonah cast into the Sea ; or, the Sinner under Conviction 76 

Jonah i. 12. — And he 6aid unto them, take me up and cast 
me forth into the sea. 

(3) 



4 CONTENTS. 

SERMON VII. fam. 
The Sin and Punishment of Lot's Wife ; or, the Convinced 
Sinner still in Danger, 90 

Genesis xix. 26. — But his wife looked back from behind him, 
and she became a pillar of salt. 

SERMON VIII. 
Lot flying from Sodom ; or, what Repentance is, 102 

Genesis xix. 17. — Escape for thy life. 

SERMON IX. 
The Sinner no time for Delay ; or, Lot hastened off to Zoar, 114 
Genesis xix 17. — Haste thee, escape thither. 

SERMON X. 
Parable of the Prodigal Son, 127 

Luke xv. 11, 24. — And he said a certain man had two 
sons, &c. 

SERMON XI. 

The way to obtain God's Favor, 137 

Psalm cxix. 58. — I entreated thy favor with my whole 
heart : be merciful unto me according to thy word. 

SERMON XII. 

The Great Question, 148 

Acts xvi. 30. — What must I do to be saved ? 

SERMON XIII. 
What the Sinner must Believe, J.... 158 

Acts xvi. 31. — Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou 
shalt be saved. 

SERMON XIV. 
The Rejoicing Jailer; or, the Sinner taught how to Believe, 169 
Acts xvi. 34. — He rejoiced, believing in God. 

SERMON XV. 
The Sinner Trying to Believe, 181 

St. Mark ix. 24. — Lord I believe, help thou mine unbelief. 

SERMON XVI. 
The Christian must be Holy, 194 

1 Peter i. 15, 16. — But as he which hath called you is holy, 
so be ye holy in all manner of conversation ; because it is 
written, be ye holy : for I am holy. 



CONTENTS. 5 

SERMON XVII. pa«. 
Confirmation, 208 

Psalm 1. 14. — Pay thy vows. 

SERMON XVIII. 
God's "Wondrous Love to Sinners, 216 

1 John iii. 1. — Behold what manner of love the Father hath 
bestowed on us ! 

SERMON XIX. 

What the Scriptures Teach us, 226 

John v. 39. — Search the Scriptures. 

SERMON XX. 

The Advantages of Hearing God's Word, 238 

Rom. x. 17. — So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing 
by the word of God. 

SERMON XXI. 
The Sinner Beginning a Religious Life, 250 

2 Peter iii. 18. — Grow in grace. 

SERMON XXII. 

God's Grace and Man's Endeavors, 261 

Phil. ii. 12, 13. — Work out your own salvation with fear 
and trembling : for it is God which worketh within you 
both to will and to do. 

SERMON XXIII. 
How the Christian Grows in Grace, 270 

St. Mark iv. 28. — First the blade, then the ear, after that the 
full corn in the ear. 

SERMON XXIV. 

The Christian Like a Tree by the Water Side, 280 

Jer. xvii. 8. — He shall be like a tree planted by the waters. 

. SERMON XXV. 

Parable of the Sower, 293 

Matt. xiii. 3-9. — Behold a sower went forth to sow, &c. 

SERMON XXVI. 

The Careless Christian Warned, 304 

Matt. xxv. 8. — The foolish said unto the wise, give us of 
your oil : for our lamps are gone out. 



6 CONTENTS. 

SERMON XXVII. pagb. 

God's Eye always ox us, 318 

Gen. xvi. 13. — Thou God seest me. 

SERMON XXVIII. 

All of us must give Account to God, 330 

Rom. xiv. 12. — Every one of us shall give account of him- 
self to God. 

SERMON XXIX. 
Outward Religion not enough to Fit a Man for Heaven, . . . .343 
Matt. vii. 21. — Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, 
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but he that 
doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 

SERMON XXX. 
Duties of Servants to God, 355 

Ephesians vi. 8.— Knowing that whatsoever good thing any 
man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether 
he be bond or free. 

SERMON XXXI. 

Duties of Servants to Masters and Fellow Servants, 366 

Ephesians vi. 8. — Knowing that whatsoever good thing any 
man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether 
he be bond or free. 

SERMON XXXII. 
The Christian a Light to the World, 378 

Matt. v. 16. — Let your light so shine before men, that they 
may see your good works, and glorify your Father which 
is in heaven. 

SERMON XXXIII. 

The Gain of a Lost Soul, 39C 

Mark viii. 36. — What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain 
the whole world, and lose his own soul ? 

SERMON XXXIV. 
Those who are Confirmed must Give up all Worldliness, . . . . 401 
Rom. xii. 2. — Be not conformed to this world. 

SERMON XXXV. 

The Refreshing Grace of the Gospel, 412 

Prov. xxv. 25. — As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good 
news from a far country. 

SERMON XXXVI. 
The Faithful Christian shall Wear a Crown, 425 

Revelation ii. 10. — Be thou faithful unto death, and I will 
give thee a crown of life 



PREFACE 



It has long been a favourite and fondly cherished design of the 
undersigned to prepare a volume of simple Sermons for servants, 
believing that he could devote a portion of his life to no employment 
promising more benefit to his fellow-beings. In the providence of 
God, he has hitherto been prevented from the effort, by a succession 
of calls on his time and energies which have seemed to claim his 
attention, so that he has only been able occasionally to publish such 
contributions as he could procure from others. The following volume 
of Sermons he believes to be far more likely to meet the wants of 
Christian masters and servants, than any thing which has yet been 
presented by himself or others. They are designed for the use of 
families, to be read especially on Sabbath evenings, by the master, 
mistress, or other member of the same. 

Those who have attempted this duty well know now difficult it is to 
select out of the thousands of tracts and sermons which abound in 
our land, such as are well adapted to servants. To interest and 
edify them at the same time, is a difficult task, to the most ingenious 
and zealous preachers. How much more difficult to find any thing 
in print which may be read, so as to arrest their attention and affect 
their hearts ! The hope is cherished, that in the following short and 
plain discourses this object will be in some good degree effected. The 
undersigned has read them in the spirit in which he hopes others 
will read them — not to criticise each sentence, either as to its style 
or precise theological bearing, but to see whether the great truths of 
our holy religion are zealously and faithfully applied to the hearts 
and consciences of those to whom they are addressed. Believing 
that such is their character, he heartily commends them to the use 

(7) 



8 PREFACE. 

of the families belonging to the Episcopal Church in "Virginia. Nor 
can he forbear to give utterance to the pleasing hope and strong 
conviction, which dwells within him, that this labour of love on the 
part of a number of his brethren will not be in vain. He believes 
that another volume, having the same object in view, will soon be 
called for. He trusts that not only those who have contributed to 
this, but other brethren in Virginia and elsewhere, will be ready to 
carry on the good work. Already has he conceived a plan for such 
a volume. In the present, nothing more has been attempted, in the 
miscellaneous discourses which have been furnished without concert, 
than to set forth the operations of God's spirit, by the instrumentality 
of the Word, in changing the hearts and reforming the lives of sin- 
ners. In a succeeding volume, should it be called for, it is proposed, 
after the old and excellent method of our Reformers, who only fol- 
lowed the example of the early fathers, to obtain a series of sermons 
on the commandments, the creed, the Lord's prayer, and the sacra- 
ments, in treating of which all the great doctrines and duties of 
religion will be more regularly and fully set forth. As an accom- 
paniment to both volumes, and as a most needful help to family 
instruction, it is proposed to prepare several catechisms, of different 
sizes, suitable to the ages of the pupils, by which they may be the better 
enabled to profit by sermons, whether read to them in private or 
preached in public. 

It is needless to add, that neither the present nor any future pub- 
lication can be issued from the press without pecuniary responsibility. 
That responsibility is assumed by the brother whose name appears 
on the title page, and is the chief contributor to the book. His bre- 
thren in the ministry and the members of our church will, it is 
confidently believed, do their part towards the sale and circulation 
of the same. 

WILLIAM MEADE, 
Bishop of the P. E. Church oj Vol 



SERMON I. 

ADDRESSED TO MASTERS AND MISTRESSES, ON THE SUBJECT 
OF THE RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION OE THEIR SLAVES; 
EXTRACTED FROM THE SERMONS OE THE REV. THOMAS 
BACON, BY THE RIGHT REV. BISHOP MEADE.* 

Masters give unto your servants that which is just and equal, 
knowing that ye also have a Master in Heaven. — Col. iv. 1. 

To speak at large upon all the different branches of the 
duty of masters to their servants and slaves, and to show 
in every particular what " is just and equal towards them, 
would extend far beyond the limits of my present design ; 
besides, many of them are often occasionally taken notice 
of in other discourses, when they fall in with the subject. 
I shall, therefore, confine myself to one, and that, indeed, a 
principal branch of this duty, viz. The indispensable obliga- 
tion every master and mistress lies under ; of bringing up 
their slaves in the knowledge and fear of Almighty Gcod. 

The law of nature, as well as the revealed law of God, 
will teach us, that " masters ought to give unto their ser- 
vants that which is just and equal." Now, slaves are so 

* The Rev. Mr. Bacon was a minister of the Episcopal Church in 
Fredericktown, Maryland, during the colonial government. He was 
very faithful in his attention to the servants, and published a volume 
of sermons to masters, mistresses, and servants. They were repub- 
lished in this country, about thirty-eight years ago, by Bishop M eade. 

(9) 



10 SERMON I. 

absolutely in the power of their owners, that they have no 
property of their own : the whole labour and toil of their 
lives belonging to their masters and mistresses. Can we 
then be said to "give" them " that which is just and equal," 
if we do not make them a full return of every thing which 
their circumstances and condition require at our hands ? 
And when they withhold nothing from us, but spend the 
whole of their lives in our service, shall we be so unjust as 
to bestow only the worst and detain the best and most 
needful articles from them ? It is true we make no formal 
contract with our slaves. We purchase them as we do 
other things, which, from the time of sale, are absolutely at 
our own disposal. But, surely, it was never yet disputed 
whether that very purchase does not oblige us to furnish 
them with all necessaries suitable to their condition. It 
may, perhaps, be said that they have a maintenance for 
their labour, and is not that sufficient ? Alas ! my breth- 
ren, that is no more than we bestow upon our horses, our 
dogs, or other useful creatures about our houses : we give 
these a bodily maintenance, and supply them with food and 
shelter suited to their natures ; and if we knew any other 
wants of such dumb brutes, we would surely take care to 
supply them, as we do medicines when we know them to 
be sick or disordered by any hurt, strain, &c. But pray, 
my brethren, have men and women no farther wants than 
just what relates to their bodily sustenance ? When we 
have provided for them, as we would for beasts of burden, 
that is, whatever is necessary for keeping them in health 
and strength to do our work, have they no other wants 
worth minding ? And after keeping in repair as long as 
they will last, as we would a plough, or a cart, is what re- 
mains of them of no more value than to be thrown upon a 



DUTY TO SERVANTS. 11 

dunghill to rot, or cast into the fire ? Have they not souls 
to be saved as well as we, and as capable of happiness as 
ours are ? Hath not God the same regard for them ? And 
did not Christ, who "died for all" men, pay as great a 
price for their souls as for any of ours ? If then we pro- 
vide ever so well for their bodies, and at the same time 
suffer their souls to perish through our default, have we 
not put them off with the worst, and defrauded them of the 
oest and most valuable part of their wages ? And how can 
we be said, in such a melancholy case, to have " done that 
which is just and equal" to those who have given us all 
they had here, and have lost, by our neglect, all the good 
things they had to expect hereafter? Nay, have been 
suffered by us to fall into dreadful, everlasting misery, for 
want of a conscientious care on our parts to prevent it ? 

We are commanded by our blessed Saviour, to be mer- 
ciful, even as our Father, which is in Heaven, is merciful. 
Now the great mercy of God hath been shown to us, in re- 
vealing to us the way of salvation, through our Lord Jesus 
Christ. If, therefore, we would comply with this great pre- 
cept, and be merciful, as he is merciful, we cannot surely 
perform it more effectually, than in showing the same he 
hath shown to us, by holding forth the light of the gospel 
to these poor creatures, now sitting in darkness, and in the 
valley of the shadow of death ; and by putting them in the 
road towards heaven, and guiding their feet into the way 
of peace, as he hath done to us. 

If we are commanded to extend our good offices even to 
the beasts that perish, and not to meet the ox or ass, even 
of an enemy, going astray, without bringing it back ; or 
to see the ass of him that hateth us, lying under its bur- 
then, without lending a helping hand, how much more are 



12 SERMON I. 

we bound to do the offices of mercy and kindness to men 
and women like ourselves, and especially those who stand 
in the next relation to us with our own children ; and not 
to see our poor brother's soul going astray, or labouring 
under the burden of his sins, without striving in any case to 
help it from under its heavy load, and endeavour to bring 
it into the right way ? 

God hath given us an extraordinary authority over our 
slaves ; a power which (except in life or limb) hath very 
few limitations. Can we suppose he hath entrusted us with 
this extensive authority for no other end than our own tem- 
poral gains ? Or shall we not rather acknowledge, that it 
ought also to be used for the promoting of his service, and 
the prudent enforcing of his commands ? We daily pray, 
or ought daily to pray, that his "kingdom" may "come," 
and his "will be done in earth as it is in Heaven." And 
when that prayer is so far answered to us, by the opportu- 
nities he affords us, of exalting that kingdom on earth, 
ought we not then to labour with our utmost diligence, that 
the subjects of Satan may be brought over to the dominion 
of Christ, and live according to his laws, by a due applica- 
tion of such power, and other means, as his good provi- 
dence hath thought fit to put into our hands ? If we 
neglect these opportunities, and make no use of these 
means ; or if we exert this authority only for our own ser- 
vice, and take no care of his, do not our tongues give our 
practice the he, as often as we say the Lord's prayer ? 
And must we not either deceive ourselves, when we repeat 
that particular petition, without knowing or considering 
what we pray for, or play the hypocrite with our God, 
when we understand the meaning of it, and yet use no 
endeavours to make it effectual ? 



DUTY TO SERVANTS. 13 

It is St. Paul's precept, that "whatsoever we do,'' we 
should "do all to the glory of God." And how can we 
glorify our Heavenly Father, more than by bringing up 
his poorer children, whom he hath committed to our care, 
in his knowledge and care ? Or how can we dishonour him 
more in this world, than by suffering them to remain in 
utter ignorance, and the practice of such abominations as 
are highly offensive to him, when it is so much in our 
power to do otherwise ? 

Christians are called a "royal priesthood;" and Christ 
is said to have "made us kings and priests unto God;" to 
set before us both the reward and employment. If, there- 
fore, we would reign with him as "kings" in Heaven, we 
must serve him as "priests" here upon earth; not only by 
offering him the spiritual sacrifices of praise and thanks- 
giving, but by doing the office of spiritual instructors and 
teachers in our own houses, and "preparing the way of 
the Lord" in the hearts and affections of our children and 
servants. 

If a master or mistress, in a plentiful country, abound- 
ing with all the necessaries of life, should keep slaves in a 
starving condition, without allowing them food, or clothing, 
or shelter ; but put them under a necessity of picking up a 
living as well as they could, without any assistance towards 
it, or abating any part of their time and labour for that 
purpose, would not all mankind cry out shame at such in- 
human and cruel treatment ? And shall not we be ashamed, 
in a Christian country, where the gospel is so plenteously 
shed abroad, to keep our slaves in ignorance and blindness, 
denying spiritual food and nourishment to their souls ? Or, 
what amounts to much the same, leaving them to pick it 
up among their fellow servants, who are as " blind" and 

2 



14 SERMON I. 

ignorant as themselves, and as ready to "fall into a ditch;" 
or else to get it, if they can, at church, supposing they 
should have the grace and inclination to go there of their 
own accord ; and where, for want of some instruction in 
the first principles of Christianity, nine parts in ten of what 
they hear must needs be unintelligible to them. If it were 
left to our own choice whether we would perish with hun- 
ger, or be damned to all eternity, and that we were laid 
under an absolute necessity of doing the one or the other, 
would we not think it a dreadful case? For to die of 
famine is most wretched ! And damnation ! it is not to be 
thought of without the utmost shock and horror ! Yet 
surely, the odds are infinitely great : and the least due 
reflection must needs determine us to the laying down of 
the body in pain and misery for a short season, rather than 
to give up body and soul to certain torment and destruc- 
tion for ever and ever ! Apply this, now, to the case of 
our slaves, and say, whether it would be more cruel and 
inhuman in us, to let them perish here for want of such 
necessaries of life as we have plenty of in our hands ; or 
to suffer their souls to starve amidst a harvest of God's 
word, and for want of that " nurture and admonition of the 
Lord," which is easier come by, and costs less in furnish- 
ing, than the meanest piece of clothing they put on ? 

If our servants neglect or refuse to "give" us "that 
which is just and equal," the law hath given us power to 
correct and force them to do it. But if we refuse them 
that which is just and equal, where is their remedy ? In 
cases which concern their souls, and upon which their 
eternal welfare depends, there is no earthly court in which 
they can have redress. This is a matter in which con- 
science is purely concerned, and where no human jurisdic- 






DUTY TO SERVANTS. 15 

tion takes place. Masters have all the authority, servants 
none. " To whom much is given, of him shall much be re- 
quired." And by how much less human remedies are 
wanting, by so much the more does divine justice interpose. 
To whom then are owners of slaves answerable ? Before 
whom shall they account for their behaviour as such, but 
the Lord of Hea*ven and earth, who is " no respecter of 
persons," and who judgeth "the cause of the poor and 
needy, and him that hath no helper?" If, therefore, we 
deny to these poor creatures any of their dues, and espe- 
cially such as relate to their future happiness, shall they 
not have recourse to the court of God's equity in Heaven, 
where their complaints will be impartially heard; where 
masters and servants shall one day appear face to face ; 
and where strict justice will be done them, without the 
least favour or affection? "If I," saith holy Job, "did 
despise the cause of my man-servant, or of my maid-ser- 
vant, when they contended with me, what shall I do when 
God rises up ? And when he visiteth, what shall I answer 
him ? Did not he that made me in the womb, make him ? 
And did not one fashion us in the womb ?" And masters 
are directed, in the text, to "give that which is just and 
equal" to their servants, from this awful consideration, that 
"they also have a Master in Heaven." 

We are all apt to complain of bad servants ; and truly, 
so far as there is justice and reason in this complaint, I am 
of opinion the fault is, in a great measure, our own. We 
do not take the proper methods of making them good. 
For what can we expect from poor ignorant creatures, who 
have little or no care taken of their principles ; — little or 
no notion of an all-seeing God, or a future judgment ; — 
nothing but sense and appetite to guide them ; — nothing 



16 SERMON I. 

but the present object to allure or terrify them ? If we 
are, at any time, under a necessity of leaving our affairs to 
the management of others, we do not think it prudent to 
commit them to any, but such as we have a good opinion 
of, as honest, conscientious men, who would render us a 
faithful account of them to the best of their abilities. Our 
slaves are daily and hourly intrusted witB our substance, 
and the success of our crops and dealings, do often depend 
upon their diligence and fidelity. And how can we assure 
ourselves of these qualifications in them, otherwise than by 
taking care to instil good principles into their minds, by 
setting before them much greater rewards than our poor 
services, or even the whole world can afford ; and awaken- 
ing their consciences by the dread of much greater punish- 
ments, and pains far more intolerable than they could 
suffer by perishing of hunger, or cold, dying upon a rack, 
being cut to pieces, or whipped to death for their faults. 
The strongest tie upon the human mind is plainly that of 
conscience. All other restraints, of what sort soever, like 
cords and wyths upon the arms of a Sampson, are easily 
broke through ; and, when the passions grow strong, dis- 
solve before them " as flax burnt with fire." Where con- 
science is wanting, ways and means of eluding or escaping 
the penalties of human laws are seldom wanting ; or, at 
least, the bold sinner, when the vice is inviting, will readily 
run the venture, as every day's experience may teach us. 
If he escapes, he reckons it as so much gain : and, if dis- 
covered, will either make light of the punishment, or receive 
it as a caution to lay his schemes better, the next piece of 
wickedness he attempts. How many unfortunate people 
do we hear of, whose crimes have brought them to untimely 
ends ; who, being hardened in infidelity, and having their 






DUTY TO SERVANTS. 17 

consciences seared through a long course of wickedness and 
irreligion, have been quite regardless of the greatest of all 
human punishments ; have faced a gibbet with intrepidity, 
and looked upon a most shameful death, as nothing more 
than the laying down of a wretched being, and stepping 
out of an ill-natured world, that for the preservation of 
society would not let them live in it as they thought proper ? 
And can we, my brethren, hope for any better from our 
slaves, while they remain strangers to conscience and reli- 
gion, and ignorant of the rewards and punishments of the 
life to come ? Consider their state of labour and servitude ; 
that the drudgery is theirs, and the profit entirely ours ; 
that their senses are as perfect, and their passions and ap- 
petites equally strong with ours ; and consequently, their 
temptations to ease or idleness, to drinking or riot, to 
filching for the supply of their pleasures and extravagance, 
or to any present gratification, increase in force as the 
means of satisfying them are farther removed from their 
reach, and seldomer fall in their way. And then, putting 
religion out of the question, say what better security you 
have for their good behaviour than the dread of the lash, 
or a continual, uneasy watch kept over them ? Both these 
may find a way to disappoint ; they may grow hardened 
under correction, or at length disregard life itself, which 
affords them so little of their own ways and desires. 
Whereas, to convince them of the certainty of a future 
state, and that the eyes of Almighty God are continually 
upon them, who will reward them for their honest service, 
if done to him for his son's sake, though no man was to 
take notice of it, and punish them for their idleness and 
dishonesty, though their owner or overseers were never to 
come to the knowledge of it, must necessarily tend to make 

2* 



18 SERMON I. 

them as careful of our business and substance behind our 
backs as before our faces, and as much afraid of doing an 
ill thing under covert of the greatest darkness and secrecy, 
as they would in the open day, before a thousand witnesses. 
If then it be so plain, that a religious conscience is the best 
security for any person's fidelity and honesty, we cannot 
but own that to bring up our slaves in the knowledge and 
fear of God, must needs be of great advantage to our tem- 
poral affairs ; and that a little care and watchfulness be- 
stowed in this way, may save us a vast deal of time and 
trouble in another. For, to sum up this point in the words 
of a pious author, " He that hath conscience needs no 
spies ; and he that hath none will outwit a hundred." 

He then that covets good servants ; he that is desirous 
of God's blessing upon his own and their labours, and upon 
all that he hath in the house, and in the field ; He that 
would assure himself of the favour of heaven, and a com- 
fortable enjoyment of earthly good things, let him strive to 
bring up his slaves and family in the knowledge and fear 
of God, and the love of Christ. And let him depend upon 
it, that he, who is truth itself and cannot lie, will be faith- 
ful and just in performing his promises ; will bestow upon 
him whatever advantages are suitable to his condition, and 
deny him nothing which is necessary for his comfort here, 
and is at the same time conducible to his eternal welfare 
hereafter. 

But now, a fresh scene of blessings opens itself to our 
view, and leads us to consider the advantages which arise 
from the instruction of our slaves in the knowledge and 
fear of God, with respect to a future state. Wherein we 
shall find the motives grow stronger, and receive an addi 
tional force, in proportion as the good things of another 






DUTY TO SERVANTS. 19 

life are more valuable and lasting than the good things of 
this life. 

It is no small advantage, arising from the instruction of < 
others, that we ourselves grow more knowing in the things 
we strive to show them. Those who have taken the pains 
of catechising their children, (I do not mean such as 
barely teach them the questions and answers by rote, but 
such as also labour to make them apprehend the meaning 
and understanding of the principles of the Christian reli- 
gion,) must needs have found by experience, how much 
themselves have increased in the knowledge of God, by 
endeavouring to impart it to their little ones. And since 
the instruction of others is so effectual a means of obtain- 
ing it, we shall surely rejoice that God, in his providential 
goodness, hath put such happy opportunities in our hands 
of propagating that knowledge in our slaves, and at the 
same time of improving it in ourselves, to their and our 
own unspeakable spiritual benefit. This will induce us to 
be careful and diligent, in searching and studying the holy 
Scriptures, those pure fountains of divine wisdom ; " to lay 
up the word of God in our hearts, and in our souls ; to 
bind them for a sign upon our hands ; to be as frontlets be- 
tween our eyes ; to teach them to our children and ser- 
vants ; to speak of them when we sit in the house, and 
when we walk in the way, whe'\ we lie down, and when we 
rise up." And we should strive to make them as plain, as 
intelligible, and as full to the view of ourselves and our 
households, as if they were " written upon the door-posts 
of our houses, and upon our gates." And, as a farther 
spur to our diligence herein, we may add the dread of that 
heavy wo, threatened by our Saviour to the Scribes and 
Pharises, who shut up the kingdom of Heaven against 



20 SERMON I. 

men, and neither went in themselves, nor would suffer them 
that were entering to go in. 

But there is yet the greatest and most glorious advan- 
tage behind, which, bringing up the rear, crowns and 
establishes all the rest : namely, the glories of a happy 
eternity. And these are expressly promised, to such as 
labour for the conversion of souls. " The fruit of the 
righteous is a tree of life," saith Solomon, "and he that 
winneth souls is wise." " They that be wise," saith Daniel, 
" shall shine as the brightness of the firmament : and they 
that turn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and 
ever." This is a reward beyond the utmost stretch of human 
imagination ; a happiness as impossible to be described by 
the tongue of man, as it is for him to comprehend, even in 
thought. " For eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither 
have entered into the heart of man, the things which God 
hath prepared for them that love him." 

And are all these benefits, all these unspeakable glories 
laid before us, my brethren ? Are we pressed and invited 
to accept them upon the easiest terms, and shall we hesitate 
and turn our backs upon them ? Shall we sit still and 
expect that all these blessings should be bestowed upon us, 
without some care on our part in seeking for them ? That 
God should do all for our glory, and we nothing for the 
advancement of his ? Shall we vainly hope to rejoice for 
ever in the presence of Almighty God, while we use no 
endeavours for causing "joy in Heaven over one sinner 
that repenteth," and is converted by our means ? Can we 
set up any rational claim to be "joint-heirs with Christ," 
and to be "glorified together with him," if we refuse to 
be " workers together with him," in promoting the salva- 
tion of men ? Or what reasonable hope can we entertain 



DUTY TO SEKVANTS. 21 

of "shining forth as the sun," among the "righteous in 
the kingdom of their Heavenly Father," when we are so 
niggardly of the light of the gospel, which he hath so 
liberally and freely bestowed upon us ; ,and instead of 
letting it shine in its full lustre before our poor, ignorant, 
benighted slaves, rather "hide it under a bushel," and un- 
gratefully suffer them to remain in darkness? No, my 
brethren, as the reward, so is the " labour of love" set 
before us, and the one is not to be expected without the 
performance of the other. And if we will pretend any 
right to the wages of Heaven, as " servants" and " stewards" 
of the most high God, who hath entrusted us with his 
"talents," we must, as it "is just and equal," give a due 
proportion of Christian instruction to our ignorant slaves ; 
so that, advancing his kingdom, by the addition of so many 
subjects to it here, we and they may be received into it 
hereafter. 



SEEMON II. 

THE CHRISTIAN'S LIFE A LIFE OF PRAYER. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 
Pray -vrithout ceasing. — 1 Thes. v. 17. 

Maxy persons think this a hard command. Others saj 
it is not in the power of man to obey it. At first sight it 
does seem to be too much for us sinful creatures. TTe have 
so many other things, too, to keep our minds thinking and 
our hands going. We are all ready to ask, " who has time 
to pray always?" I have heard not only worldly and 
wicked men talk so, but even some professors of religion, 
when they have heard or read the command, " Pray with- 
out ceasing." But, hard as it may seem to be, I wish to 
show you 

1. That every Christian ought to try and obey this com- 
mand. 

A number of ministers of the gospel were in the habit 
of meeting together to talk about the Bible and religion. 
One night their conversation turned on the duty of prayer. 
One of the ministers asked, " What do you understand by 
the command, 'pray without ceasing?'" They talked a 
long time about it, but could not give any very plain ex- 
planation, of it. At last one of them said, "let us appoint 
(22) 



DUTY OF PRAYER. 23 

brother G to write something of a sermon on the sub- 
ject, to be read at the next meeting." This was agreed 
to, and their meeting was closed by prayer. These meet- 
ings were held regularly once a month. As they were all 
about leaving the room, a good old servant woman, who 

had listened to their talk, said to Mr. G , *" What, sir, 

will it take a whole month to tell what it is to 'pray 
without ceasing?' I always thought that one of the 
easiest texts in the Bible." "Well, well," said the old 
minister, " tell us, Mary, what do you say about it ? How 
do you understand it ? Can you find time to pray always ?" 
"Oh! yes, sir," said she. "What, when you have so 
much to do from day dawn until late at night ?" "Yes, 
indeed, sir ; and the more I have to do, the more I can 
pray." " Why, how is that ?" asked the old minister. "Do 
let us know how it is ; for most people think the other 
way." "Well, sir," said Mary, "when I first open my 
eyes in the morning, I pray Lord open the eyes of my 
understanding. As I am dressing, I pray that I may be 
clothed with the robe of Christ's righteousness. When I 
have washed my face I ask God to wash my soul clean from 
sin in the blood of my Saviour. As I begin to work I 
pray that I may have strength to be faithful ; that, as my 
day is, so may my strength be. When I am kindling the 
re, I pray that my heart may be warmed and revived by 
Christ's love. As I sweep out the house, I pray that God 
would send the Holy Ghost into my heart to cleanse it of 
all its sinfulness. While I am getting breakfast, or eating 

I myself, I pray God to feed me with the heavenly manna, 
and the sincere milk of his word. And, as I am taking 
care of the children, I look up to God as my Father, and 
------- 



24 SERMON II. 

the way I do in all my duties. And so, the more I have 
to do, the more I pray. Almost every thing I do gives 
me some thoughts to help me in prayer. And then I try 
to remember that God's eye is always on me, and his ear 
always open to my prayer." " This is enough," said the 
old preacher. " Mary has told the true meaning of the 
command, 'pray without ceasing.' How true it is that 
these things are often hid from the wise and prudent, 
and revealed unto babes ! Go on, Mary ; that is the way 
to make religion your life. I see now what the blessed 
Saviour meant when he said, 'watch unto prayer.' And 
as for us, my brethren, let us bless God for the simple in- 
struction Mary has given us. How happy must that life 
be which is spent in such close communion with God ! to 
find God in all we do ; to turn all our duties, trials, and 
pleasures, into prayer ! How blessed is the assurance that, 
it is not the rich, the learned, the great only, that God will 
teach, but the poor, and the needy, and the ignorant also. 
It is the meelc that he will guide in judgment." This little 
explanation of Mary was thought enough. The idea of 
writing the sermon was given up, and the ministers went 
home, determined to follow Mary's example in praying 
without ceasing. 

My friends, you ought all to try and do as Mary did. 
You cannot read or preach, as some other people. But 
you can all pray, as Mary did. To do this you need not 
be able to read a letter in a book. Your Saviour has 
set you the example of praying in this way. His whole 
life was a life of prayer. Sometimes he used to go into 
the mountains, and pray all night. Then, too, he has told 
you to come boldly to his throne of grace. He says, 
" Ask, and it shall be given you, seek, and ye shall find, 






DUTY OF PRAYER. 25 

knock, and it shall be opened unto you." " He spake this 
parable, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint." 
Then he says, " I am he that blotteth out thy transgres- 
sions ; put me in remembrance; let us plead together." 
St. James tells us, that " the effectual, fervent prayer of a 
righteous man availeth much." In a far distant country, 
there was once a good man of God, whose name was Elias. 
But the people of that country were very wicked. So Elias 
prayed that God would keep back his rains from them. 
And God heard his prayer, and it did not rain for three 
years and six months. The earth was dried and parched 
under the heat of the sun. Then, when the people were 
starving and perishing for food, Elias prayed again to God 
to send rain, and tlie heavens poured out their rains, and 
watered the earth. Elias did this to show the people that 
there is a great God who rules in the heavens. Was not 
this a great answer to prayer ? There was once a great 
city called Sodom. The people were all very wicked. But 
there was one good man there, whose name was Lot. Lot 
was the nephew of good old father Abraham. God spake 
out of heaven to Abraham, and told him that he would 
destroy the city of Sodom with a tempest of fire and brim- 
stone. But Abraham prayed to God to spare it. God 
heard his prayer, and told him that, if fifty good people 
could be found in Sodom, he would not destroy it. Abra- 
ham then asked the Lord, If there be forty-five, wilt thou 
spare it ? And God told him, If I find forty-five there, I 
will not destroy it. Again Abraham prayed, If there be 
forty, wilt thou spare it ? And God said, If there be forty, 
I will not destroy it. Still Abraham prayed, If there be 
thirty, wilt thou spare it ? And then again, If there be 
twenty? And last, If there be ten, wilt thou not spare 






26 SERMON II. 

the city ? And God still listened patiently to his prayer, 
and said, If ten righteous people can be found in Sodom, I 
will not destroy it. Here Abraham stopped praying, and 
seemed to tremble at his own prayers, as if he was going 
too far, and aslnng too much of God. The Lord patiently 
heard and answered all his prayers, so long as he continued 
to pray. Nor did he cease to answer him until Abraham 
showed by his conduct that he would ask no more. Gen. 
xviii. 23—33. 

Once, as the people of Israel were journeying through 
the wilderness, they turned away from the worship of God, 
and went to worshipping idols. Then God said to his ser- 
vant Moses, "I will destroy this people." But Moses 
prayed with great earnestness for them. He went alcne 
up into the mountain to pray for them. But Gad com- 
manded him to come down ; as if he did not wish him to 
pray to him. Then God told him he would make him a 
great and mighty nation. Yet Moses went on praying for 
the people. At last, when the Lord saw that his mind and 
heart could not be turned from the prayer, God said to 
nim, "Let me alone, that I may destroy them." Just as 
if he could not destroy them, so long as Moses continued 
to pray for them. Ex. xxxii. 10. What great answers to 
prayer were these ! 

The blessed Saviour never shut his ear against any sin- 
cere prayer. A poor woman once came to him and prayed 
to him to heal her daughter, who was greatly troubled with 
a devil. At first, he did not seem to notice her. She fell 
down at his feet and looked up to him. But he turned 
away. His disciples begged him for her. But he said to 
them, " I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house 
of Israel." Still the poor woman cried to him, "Lord, help 






DUTY OF PRAYER. 27 

me." He answered and said, " It is not meet (or right) to 
take the children's bread and give it unto dogs." But she 
still prayed, and said, " Truth, Lord, yet the dogs eat of 
the crumbs which fall from the master's table." Then Jesus 
answered her prayer. He said, " Oh, woman ! great is thy 
faith ; be it unto thee even as thou wilt." I might tell 
you of many other cases when God heard and answered 
prayer. His ear is always open to the sincere prayer of 
the poorest and humblest person. Oh ! if you could, at all 
times, think of God as a Father, how much happier you 
would be. Think how many troubles meet you in the world. 
Every day you have something to try your heart. Now 
what do you do under these trials ? Do you go to God in 
earnest prayer for his grace and blessing? Do you not 
rather trust to your own strength, and try by your own wis- 
dom, to get out of them ? Then you get into a bad temper ; 
you look sour, and complain of your hard trials, and seem to 
be angry with every one around you. This is very sinful. 
God has said, " Call upon me in the day of trouble, and I 
will deliver thee." If, instead of getting into a bad humour, 
you would go to God in earnest prayer, he would either 
help you out of your trouble, or he would make it work 
good to you in some way. He has said that " all things 
shall work together for good to them that love hinu" The 
Psalmist says of Christians, " they cry unto the Lord in 
their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distress." 
Yes, God will hear you when you cry to him. In every 
trial that meets you, whether at home, or far away ; a poor 
beggar, or rolling in wealth ; whether in bondage, or at 
liberty ; in sickness, or in death ; whether resting at night 
on your bed, or in the field at work, you will find the Lord 
always ready to hear your earnest prayer. Then do not 



28 SERMON II. 

let any earthly trials keep you away from prayer. No ; nor 
the many sins that daily beset you in the way. The more 
you are troubled and tempted, the more you have need of 
earnest prayer. Go, then, to God in prayer. Confess 
your guilt before him ; mourn over your many sins, and 
beg God, in all earnestness, to have mercy on you for 
Jesus Christ's sake. „ 

2. God can hear and answer your prayer at once. 

God does not answer the prayers of many persons, be- 
cause they do not pray aright. He tells us, " ye ask, and 
receive not, because ye ask amiss." A man in great trou- 
ble of mind went to a friend to tell his sorrows, and to ask 
his advice. The answer he received was, " My friend, I 
am afraid you do not pray." But he said, "Yes, I do; if 
it be possible, I pray too much. I can hardly tell how 
many times I bow my knee in prayer a day. I often leave 
my pressing duties to pray. "But," said his friend, "you 
mistake my meaning. I do not mean that you don't bow 
the knee often enough. To bow the knee, or to go into 
your closet, is not always to pray. I mean you do not 
pray with the heart. This is the part that must pray. To 
pray this way you need not neglect your business. In all 
your busy duties you may lift up your thoughts to God in 
prayer." This is the way that good old aunt Mary prayed. 
He who will pray as she did will generally be happy. And 
God is always more ready to hear and answer such prayers 
at once, than we are to ask. 

Did you ever see the telegraph wires ? I^will tell you 
what they are. They are long wires, about the size of a 
wheat straw, stretched on the end of long poles set up in 
the earth. They reach from one end of the country to the 
other. There is a little machine at the ends which I cannot 



DUTY OF PRAYER. 29 

explain to you. Now, suppose one end of this wire to be 
in New York, and the other in New Orleans. A man in 
New York will send a message to one in New Orleans, and 
get an answer back in a few minutes. A little boy once 
went with his father to see this wonderful thing. He had 
an uncle in one of the far-off cities, and he asked his father 
to send him some message by the wires. But so many 
persons were sending messages, and receiving answers, that 
the little boy had to wait some little time. Just as he 
would go up to send his message, some one else would step 
up before him. At last the little boy got quite out of pa- 
tience, as many people will do when their wants are not at 
once gratified. But, after a while, his turn came, and he 
sent off the message to his uncle. After waiting about 
half an hour, the answer came. It was, " I will come to 
see you at Christmas, and bring you some pretty toys." 
The little boy thought this very wonderful, indeed. As 
they walked homewards he could talk of nothing else but 
the telegraph wires. "Father," said he, "did you ever 
hear of a message being sent so far, and an answer returned 
in so short a time ?" " Oh ! yes, my son ; I know a way 
by which messages are sent, and answers brought back, in 
a much less time than by the telegraph wires." " Do tell 
me," said the little boy, "what it is, and how it can be 
quicker and better than that ?" The father then said to 
him, "you remember that it was some time before you could 
could get a chance to send your message. You had to wait 
until others were attended to. But in the way I speak of, 
you are not hindered by others. Thousands can send their 
messages at the same moment, and answers . can be sent 
back to them all. Then there are the wires, and the ma- 
chinery, and the electricity, and the man who works it. 

3* 



30 SERMON II. % 

These must all be kept in good order ; and they take a good 
deal of care and attention. Besides, there are only cer- 
tain hours in the day when your messages can be sent. 
Now, by the plan I tell you of, you need none of these 
things. You need no man to tell the message to, no wires 
to carry it, no machine to keep in order, and you can send 
your message at midnight, or at daydawn, or any mo- 
ment you please." •"What, father," said the little boy, 
" and get an answer to your message as soon as by the 
telegraph?" "Yes, and a great deal sooner," said the 
father, " even before you tell with your lips what you want, 
the answer may come back. Besides, the office of the tele- 
graph is always in some town or city, and you must go to 
it before you can send your message. But the way I speak 
of does not require this. You may be in your chamber, or 
lying on your bed, or hunting in the woods, or in the fields, 
or at school, or any where else, and you can send your 
message, and get an answer immediately. Then you 
always have to write down your message by the telegraph. 
But the other way you need not write it down at all. The 
little boy who has not learned his letters, and the poor ser- 
vant who cannot read, can send their messages as well, and 
get the answers as soon, as the wisest and greatest men in 
the world. However simple and ignorant, they may be 
attended to just as soon and as kindly as the king on his 
throne." "Well, well," said the little boy, "that is, in- 
deed, a wonderful thing. Why have I never heard of that 
before ? Do tell me where I shall find an account of it." 
"I will," said the father. "You will find the fullest and 
best account of it in the Bible." By this time they had 
reached home, and the little boy ran and brought the Bible. 
The father told him where to open, and he read the follow- 









DUTY OF PKAYER. 31 

ing passages. "And it shall come to pass that before they 
call I will answer, and while they are yet speaking, I will 
hear." Isa. lxv. 24. " Then shalt thou call, and the Lord 
shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am." 
Isa. Iviii. 9. "And while I was speaking, and praying, 
and confessing my sins, and the sins of my people Israel, 
and presenting my supplications before the Lord my God ; 
yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, 
being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of 
the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked 
with me, and said, Oh Daniel ! I am now come forth to 
give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy 
supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come 
to show thee." 

"Oh! yes," said the little boy; "I see now what you 
mean. You have been talking about prayer to God, and 
how soon he can hear and answer prayer. And, indeed, 
father, this is a greater thing than the telegraph. For we 
need not tell with our lips what we want. God looks at 
the heart and will answer as soon as he sees a sincere de- 
sire there. Then the hymn in the Prayer Book says, 

' Prayer is the soul's sincere desire, 

Uttered or unexpressed ; 
The motion of a hidden fire 
That trembles in the breast/ " 

No man ever yet led a holy life without prayer. No 
man eyer was a sincere Christian without the habit of 
prayer. You had as well try to live without air to breathe, 
as to grow in religion and be prepared for heaven without 
prayer. 

" Prayer is the Christian's vital breath, 
The Christian's native air." 



32 SERMON II. 

A bird can as well fly without wings as you can rise up 
towards heaven without prayer. Do be persuaded, then, to 
make your life a life of prayer. I do not mean that you 
must be always on your knees- I mean that you must 
watch against temptation, and sin, and pray that God 
would help you to overcome them. You should never let 
the sun rise on you at morning without praying to God to 
help you to honour him through the day ; to govern your 
temper and your tongue ; to be faithful to your duty ; to 
keep yourselves unspotted from the world ; to keep your 
" hands from picking and stealing, and your tongues from 
evil speaking, lying, and slandering;" to enable you to love 
all men, and to do your " duty in that state of life ki which 
it hath pleased God to call you." As you know not what 
may happen to you through the day, how proper is it for 
you to pray to God for his guidance and. help. As each 
day that you spend can never be brought back, and places 
you nearer to the judgement bar of God, how proper is it 
for you to pray to him to make you better Christians, and 
prepare you to meet him. Then, when you lie down to 
sleep at night, you know not what may happen to you. As 
the sun that has set for that day may "be the last you will 
ever see, how proper is it that you should ask God to par- 
don all your sins, and take care of you through the night. 

Do not forget, my Christian friends, who it is that has 
commanded you to pray. He is none other than the great 
God, to whom you must, at last, give in your account. 
Jesus, your Saviour, invites you to pray. He says that 
they who pray to him in secret he will reward openly ; and 
that whatsoever you shall ask in his name, he will give it. 
"If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it." 
Look at that precious Saviour. See him, by faith, sitting 






DUTY OF PRAYER. 33 

at the right hand of the Father,' making intercession for 
you. Behold him bending his listening ear to your feeble 
and stammering prayers, then turning to the Father and 
pleading for you. Your prayers may be very imperfect, 
but this kind Saviour takes them up, and, as your friend, 
presents them to the Father. And, when he presents 
them, the Father remembers all his dying love for you, and, 
for his sake, looks graciously upon you. Do not forget, 
then, in all your prayers, to fix your thoughts and your 
heart on this gracious Saviour. Offer them all up to God 
in his name and through his merits. So will God hear 
your prayer and answer you according to his mercy in 
Christ Jesus our Lord. 



I often say my prayers, 

But do I ever pray ? 
Or do the wishes of my heart 

Suggest the words I say ? 

'Tis useless to implore, 
Unless I feel my need : 

Unless 'tis from a sense of want 
That all my prayers proceed. 

I may as well kneel down 
And worship gods of stone, 

As offer to the living God 
A prayer of words alone. 

For words without the heart 
The Lord will never hear ; 

Nor will he ever those regard 
Whose prayers are insincere. 






Lord ! teach me what I want, 
And teach me how to pray ; 



34 SERMON II. 

Nor let me e'er implore thy grace, 
Not feeling what I say. 

Questions. — 1. What is it to pray always ? 2. Tell the way the old 
woman prayed without ceasing. 3. Can all of us do the same? 
4. Who has set us the greatest example of prayer? 5. What about 
Elias praying ? 6. What about Abraham praying ? 7. What about 
the poor woman ? 8. Can God hear and answer prayer at once ? 
9. Do men always pray when they kneel before God ? 10. Can a 
man live a holy life without player ? 11. In whose name must you 
pray? 



SERMON III. 

SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY THEIR MASTERS. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Servants obey, in all things, your masters. — Col. iii. 22. 

Many, many years ago, there lived in a far distant coun- 
try, a good old man whose name was Jacob. He had 
twelve sons. The youngest was named Joseph. He was 
a lad of tender years and greatly loved by his father. 
The others were shepherds, and spent much of their time 
in the fields, attending their father's flocks. While Joseph 
was asleep, one night, he dreamed that his father and 
mother and brethren were at work with him in the harvest 
field, and all their sheaves rose up on end and bowed 
to him. When Joseph waked up, he told this dream to his 
father and his brothers. His father treasured it up in his 
heart but his brothers hated him for it ; for, they thought 
it was as much as to say that they would, one day, have to 
bow themselves to the earth before him. From that time 
they could not look upon Joseph with pleasure. One day, 
his father sent him in search of his brethren who had gone 
off after their flocks. He wandered on from field to field, 
but could not find them. At last he met a stranger 
in the way who told him that he had heard them say that 

(35) 



db SERMON III. 

they were going to Dothan. See now this lad, with not a 
care in his heart, pushing forward his steps to find his 
brothers whom he loved. He comes to Dothan, and how 
does his heart leap with joy when he finds them there ! 
But, as he draws near to them, they say to each other, 
" behold, this dreamer cometh. Let us slay him and cast 
him into some pit ; and we will say some evil beast hath 
devoured him ; and we shall see what will become of his 
dreams." But his brother Reuben said, "let us not kill 
him but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness." 
So they cast him into the pit, and they sat down to eat. 
And as they looked up, they saw a company of merchants 
coming on their way down to Egypt to sell their spices. 
And one of them said, " what profit is it if we slay our 
brother and conceal his blood, let us sell him to these mer- 
chants." So they pulled little Joseph up out of the pit, 
and sold him as a slave to these merchants for twenty pieces 
of silver. They carried him off, far from his home and 
friends, into the land of Egypt. There, they sold him to 
an officer of the king. And now this boy, who but a short 
time before was free and happy in his father's house, is a 
friendless slave, in the palace of a heathen king. But he 
was a good and pious youth. He remembered the instruc- 
tions of his father and worshipped God with all his heart. 
He determined, therefore, to be faithful to his duty ; to 
give the king no cause to complain of him, but to be honest 
and true, and kind and obedient in all things. Years passed 
on, and Joseph kept his resolution. Nothing could move 
him from it. He carefully watched against sin. He had 
many trials and troubles. He was slandered, imprisoned, 
and hated. Yet he continued faithful to God and to his 
master. The more the king saw of him, the more he was 



SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY THEIR MASTERS. 37 

compelled to confess that he was an honest and good man, 
and that God was with him. And how richly did God 
bless Joseph for this honest, and faithful, and pious course. 
He gave him favour in the king's mind. He raised him to 
the highest honours that could be given him. He made him 
as great a man as the king himself was. At last, the land 
was visited with a great famine. Then the brethren of 
Joseph, who had sold him, came down to Egypt to buy corn 
and carry it back to their father in the land of Canaan. 
At first they did not know him. They took him to be the 
king of the country. So they bowed themselves to the 
earth before him, as Joseph had dreamed their sheaves 
had done. But after awhile, Joseph made himself known 
to them. Then were they greatly troubled and seemed 
afraid to come into his presence. But Joseph said to them 
¥ be not grieved nor angry with yourselves that ye sold me 
hither, for God did send me hither to preserve life." Then 
Joseph sent up waggons, and mules, and chariots, and ser- 
vants, to bring down his aged and care-worn father. So 
they all came down to the land of Egypt and lived there. 
And Joseph was very happy, and his father, and all his 
brethren. Thus they lived for many years. At last Jo- 
seph died and all the Egyptians mourned for him many 
days. Joseph was a servant, who in all things obeyed his 
masters, " not with eye-service but with singleness of 
heart, fearing God." Here then is the pattern of a holy 
life of one who was once a servant as you now are. Copy 
this pattern, and who shall say that God will not bless you 
too? 

There was another good old man of those times whose 
name was Elisha. He had a servant whose name was Ge- 
hazi. One day, a great and proud nobleman, came from a 

4 



38 SERMON III. 

distant country, and stood before the door of the prophet 
Elisha and asked him to cure him of his leprosy, — a dread- 
ful disease which the physicians could not cure. Elisha 
told him to go and dip himself seven times in the river 
Jordan. He went and dipped and came forth cured of his 
leprosy. Then the nobleman offered to pay Elisha in gold 
and silver. But the man of God would not take it. So 
he set' off again for his own country. And, as he was 
driving away in his Chariot, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, 
ran after him and stopped him in the way and said to him ; 
my master hath sent me, saying, there are two young men 
of the prophets come, " give them, I pray thee, a talent 
of silver and two changes of garments." And the noble- 
man gave them to him, aud he took them and hid them in 
his house. In all this Gehazi committed great sin. He 
was guilty both of lying and of stealing. But he could 
not hide it from his master Elisha. The moment he came 
into his presence Elisha said, where have you been Gehazi ? 
And he answered " thy servant went no where ?" But 
God had revealed it to Elisha, and he turned to Gehazi and 
said " the leprosy of Naaman (the nobleman) shall cleave 
unto thee, and unto thy seed (or children) for ever. And 
he went out from his presence a leper white as snow." 
Here now is the example of an unfaithful and dishonest 
servant which you should carefully avoid. If you shall do 
as Gehazi did, who can say but that God may visit you 
with some heavy punishment in this world, and with ever- 
lasting misery in the world to come ? 

But of all the examples set before you to copy, the best 
and holiest is that you have in the life of our blessed Lord 
and Saviour Jesus Christ. He too was a servant — yes, 
the servant of servants. He was born like a servant. 






SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY THEIR MASTERS. 39 

His parent3 were very poor. They had no fine house to 
live in ; no big name to boast of. When the Saviour was 
born, his birth place was in a stable and among the beasts 
of the stall. When he was growing up, his father kept 
him at work as a servant to the trade of a carpenter. 
When he became a man and began to preach the good 
news of salvation, he lived as a servant. He had no 
lands, no riches, no honours. He says he had not where 
to lay his head. As he went about doing good to the 
wretched children of men, he was treated as a servant. 
" He was despised and rejected of men ; a man of sorrows 
and acquainted with grief." When he was with his 
apostles, he acted the part of a servant. " I am among 
you," he said to them, "as he that serveth." Once, 
when he was with them, he choose the lowest office 
a servant could take. " He laid aside his garments 
and took a towel and girded himself ; after that he poured 
water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet 
and to wipe them with the towel." When his enemies 
took him to put him to death, they treated him as they 
treated slaves. When a slave was to be put to death they 
always crucified him. So they took Jesus. They mocked 
him, they spat upon him, they struck him with their 
hands, they tried him without law, they condemned him 
unjustly, they made him bear his own cross away to calvary, 
and there they put him to death as a slave. Here then 
you have the example of meekness and obedience of the 
greatest and best man the world ever saw ; even the man 
Christ Jesus. You see him in his office as a servant, going 
about on foot, serving poor and sinful men like us. What 
a pattern of faithfulness, meekness, and love, is here for 
you. Try to follow his example and God will surely bless 



40 SERMON III. 

you. But I cannot turn your thoughts away from this 
meek and lowly Saviour yet. 

I want you to look at him a little longer, for the more 
you look at him the more you must admire and love him. 
Did you ever hear of his complaining of the trials and 
hardships of his lot ? No ! if men wronged and reviled 
him he did not revile them again. He was meek and lowly 
in heart and gave to all what was their due. He always 
yielded to those who were in authority. He obeyed' his 
parents according to the flesh. He never spoke of his 
labours in life as too hard for him to bear. When his 
enemies came to take him and crucify him, he did not resist 
them though he had legions of angels at his command. He 
never seemed anxious to get clear of any duty, any trial, 
any labour, or suffering, his Heavenly Father put upon him. 

Now, my friends, his life is set before you to copy after. 
You cannot, indeed, be as good, and patient, and holy, as 
he was under trials and troubles. But still you can try, 
in all things, to be humble and obedient. You should re- 
member that God has placed you where you are. He has, in 
all ages of the world appointed some to fill the places that you 
fill. And if he has placed you there, it is your duty to fill that 
place faithfully; to be contented in that state in which it 
hath pleased God to call you ; to be kind and obedient 
towards all whom he has placed over you, " not with eye- 
service as men-pleasers, but with singleness of heart, 
fearing God." Oh! if ever you are tempted of Satan to 
complain at the labours and the hardships of your life, 
just turn your thoughts back to the meek and lowly Je- 
sus. Think of him, bowed to the earth and sweating great 
drops of blood in the garden ; think of him, persecuted in 
the hall of Pilate ; think of him, bleeding and panting on 



SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY .THEIR MASTERS. 41 

the cross. Then hear him saying in all these agonies, 
"the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink 
it ?" " Father, not my will, but thine be done." 

Only think now why God has placed you where you are. 
It is that he may bring some great good to your souls and 
make you a great blessing to many others. Has he not 
told you in his word that he will make all things work to- 
gether for good to them that love God ? He can bring 
blessings out of what seems to you the greatest evils. He 
knows what is best for you both in this world and the next. 
He sees all your heart, and mind, and temper. God knows 

I better than you do, whether it is best for you to be rich or 
poor, high or low, in bondage or in liberty. If you will 
give him your heart, and love and serve him faithfully as 
Joseph did, he will do what is best for you in time and in 
eternity. You ought then to trust him as Joseph did. 
When Joseph saw his hands bound by his brothers and 
was about to be sold as a slave, he, no doubt, wept bitterly, 
and begged to be carried back to his father. But it would 
have been worse for him ; worse for his father, worse for 
thousands of people ; for all might have perished with 
hunger. And then Joseph might never have been a great 
and good man. But God chose this lot for him. It looked 
to him to be hard and cruel ; but did not God bring good 
to him out of it ? So, my friends, God may bring great 
good to you. Had he left you to choose your state in life 
for yourself, you might have made a choice that would 
ruin you forever. It is always best for us to let God act 
for us. It matters not how wise we may be, God knows 
better than we do. However painful his dealings towards 
us may seem, he can bring good to us out of them. How- 

| ever prosperous and happy our own ways may seem to be, 

4* 



42 sermon in. 

God can in a little while turn them to our destruction. A 
mother once wept over the bed of her dying child. She 
sent for the minister to pray for it. He prayed, " Oh 
Lord, if it be thy will, let this child live." But the mother 
stopped him and said, " do not say, if it be thy will. My 
child must live, I cannot give it up." To the surprise of 
every one, the child lived. But, hear what became of him. 
Before he was fifteen years old, he had almost broken his 
mother's heart by his wickedness, and when he was twenty- 
one, he was hanged for murder. That mother had her 
own choice. Only think what must have been her sorrow. 
My friends, if you will live faithful and holy lives, God 
will not forget you in your humble state. He has given 
his word for you, as well as for the .greatest and richest 
men on earth. He often speaks to you by his apostles. 
He has told you through them, your duty, in the clearest 
and plainest manner. If you do not listen to his teach- 
ings, you can never call yourselves Christians. It is God, 
who says to you, " servants be obedient to them that are 
your masters according to the flesh." In other words, you 
must not forget that you are under their command. You 
must obey them when they speak ; for God hath placed 
them over you. You must obey them in singleness of heart 
as unto Christ. In other words, you must be sincere in 
your obedience, honest and faithful, just as if you felt that 
the eye of the Lord is always upon you. You must obey 
them willingly and cheerfully. I knew an old woman once, 
who though she always did what her mistress told her, yet 
she always did it with a sour face and a grumbling tongue. 
Often have I heard her mistress say, "Well I would rather 
Aunt Polly would do nothing at all, than to murmur and 
quarrel so much about it." Now this old woman did nc* 






SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY THEIR MASTERS. 43 

obey her mistress in the way the Lord commands. He 
says, obey in all things with singleness of heart, as the 
servants of Christ. The meaning is, that you must obey 
cheerfully ; with a willing mind, and out of love to Christ. 
Such an obedience as this God will greatly value. God 
looks at your hearts. He will not bless you if any wicked 
feelings are indulged there ; if there is any anger or bad 
temper there. You must take care, then, in doing what 
your masters and mistresses tell you, to do it in such a way 
.as to please God, and bring down his blessing on you. 
God tells you "whatsoever good thing any man doeth, 
the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond 
or free." God is ready to bless you in all you do. But 
do not forget that he looks at the heart. If that be wrong, 
all is wrong. If that be right, all is right. 

Whenev ^the Bible speaks about your obedience to your 
masters, it speaks in very clear and strong language. God 
tells you by his servant St. Peter, " servants be subject to 
your masters with all fear." That is, you must hold them 
in reverence and fear to offend them. You must fear them, 
not because they hold the lash over you, but because 
Christ commands you to do it. Then this same apostle 
says again you must be subject, " not only to the good 
and gentle but also to the froward." Some servants think 
their masters harsh and unkind, and, for this reason, think 
they are not bound to be respectful and obedient to them. 
But God tells you here that you must reverence them, even 
though they be harsh and unkind. You must remember 
that they are your masters ; God has made you their ser- 
vants; and for this reason, if for no other, you must, in 
all things be obedient to them. " This is thankworthy," 
says God, "if a man for conscience towards God endure 



44 SERMON III. 

grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if when 
ye be buffetted for your faults ye shall take it patiently ;' 
But if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it pa- 
tiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto 
were ye called : because Christ also suffered for us, leaving 
us an example that ye should follow his steps, who did no 
sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. Who, when he 
was reviled, reviled not again, when he suffered he threat- 
ened not ; but committed himself to him that judgeth 
righteously." 

It is the duty of every one who names the name of 
Christ to honour his religion, whether he be rich or poor, 
bond or free. God tells you, "Let as many servants as 
are under the yoke, count their own masters worthy of all 
honour, that the name of Christ, and his doctrines, be not 
blasphemed- All men expect to see Christians act out 
their religion. Men who are not religious themselves, and 
care nothing about religion, expect to see professing Chris- 
tians better than other people. And, if your masters do 
not find you so, who profess to be Christians, they will be 
apt to think there is not much good in religion. Whenever 
a professor of religion acts badly, most men will lay the 
blame to religion. This is what is meant when Christians 
are told to be careful not to cause the name of Christ to be 
blasphemed. They must see that their conduct does not 
cause others to speak evil of it. 

But do some of you say, " Yes, this is all so ; but we are 
only servants, and cannot do much good ?" I would re- 
mind you that servants can show their religion as well as 
any one else. You must show your religion in your sta- 
tion as servants. You must try to be better, more obe- 
dient, more honest, gentle, kind, good-tempered, and 



SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY THEIR MASTERS. 45 

watchful over your master's interest, than those servants 
who make no profession of religion. Oh ! how watchful 
you ought to be ! The honour of your Lord, and the in- 
terest of his cause, are resting on your conduct. You can- 
not know how much good you may do, by showing to your 
masters that, in all you do, you are trying to honour God. 
God says to you again, " Be obedient to your own masters, 
and please them well in all things ; not answering again." 
It is true that many servants do what they are told, but 
they destroy all the good of it by complaining and unkind 
answers. But this is not the way for Christian servants to 
show their religion. They should do it by an humble and 
cheerful manner which so well suits your state. Again, 
God says servants must not "purloin," or steal, but show 
all good fidelity in all things. That is, you must not in any 
way disgrace the holy religion you profess ; but adorn the 
doctrine of God, your Saviour, in all things. You must 
deny, or give up, " all ungodliness and worldly lusts, and 
live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world." 
If there is any thing, my friends, binding on you, it is that 
you, who profess the name of Christ, should be temperate 
and sober in all things ; just and true in all your dealings, 
and loving and obeying God with all your hearts. Jesus 
Christ, your Saviour, came especially to save you from 
your sins ; to purify you from all iniquity ; to make you a 
peculiar people and zealous of good works. The great end 
of his religion is to make you holy. The very charm and 
glory of your religion is, that it is a holy religion. And I 
must tell you in God's sight, that if you are not holy in 
heart and life you have no right to the Christian name. 
"Without holiness no man shall see the Lord." 

You see now, my friends, how much the Bible says about 



46 SERMON HI. 

servants. It tells you that your Lord and Saviour was a 
servant, that as a servant he has set you an ' example to 
follow ; that you must have the same mind that was in 
him ; that you must be patient, as he was ; faithful, as he 
was ; kind and forgiving, as he was ; true and zealous, as 
he was ; obedient, as he was. Then, too, God speaks to 
you by his holy apostles. He stoops from heaven to earth 
to teach you, and encourage you. He promises to bless 
you, and to help you in every thing that you will try to do 
for his honour. Now, if you will do these things according 
to his will, he will be with you in all your trials in life. 
Then at the last, he will say to you, " Well done, good and 
faithful servant, thou hast been faithful over a few things, 
I will make thee ruler over many things, enter thou into 
the joy of thy Lord." 



Poor and needy though I be. 
God, my Maker,, cares for me ; 
Gives me clothing, shelter, food ; 
Gives me all I have of good. 

He will listen when I pray, 
He is with ine night and day, 
When I sleep and when I wakfr, 
Keeps me safe for Jesus' sake. 

He who reigns above the sky, 
Once became as poor as I; 
He whose blood for me was shed, 
Had not where to lay his head. 

Though I labour here awhile, 
He will bless me with his smile ; 
And when this short life is past, 
I shall rest with him at last. 



SERVANTS SHOULD OBEY THEIR MASTERS. 47 

Questions. — 1. Who was Joseph ? 2. What did his brothers do 
to him ? 3. What did the merchants do with him ? 4. How did he 
behave himself as a servant in Egypt? 5. What honours was he 
raised to ? 6. Who was Gehazi ? 7. How did he behave himself? 
8. How was he punished ? 9. Is our Lord ever spoken of as a ser- 
vant? 10. What is his life set before you for? 11. Ought you to be 
obedient as he was ? 12. What effect will your bad conduct have on 
others ? 



SERMON IV. 

SIN A DISEASE.— CURED BY CHRIST. 

BY THE REV. R. K. MEADE. 

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the -wilderness, even so must 
the Son of Man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should 
not perish, but have everlasting life. — John iii. 14, 15. 

These words, my dear friends, were spoken by our Sa- 
viour to Xicodemus. You have all no doubt heard of this 
man Nicodemus, and of his conversation with Christ, about 
salvation. He was a great man among the Jews, and a 
very learned man also, but, like many great and learned 
men, he did not know much about Christ's religion. So he 
came to Jesus one night, that he might learn of him. Jesus 
was very glad to teach him, and taught him the way of 
salvation. In the first place, he told him that a man must 
be born again, or he could never see the kingdom of God. 
By this he meant that a man must have a new heart formed 
in him by the Spirit of God, so that he may love and serve 
God, or he can never reach heaven. Then again he told 
him of " salvation by grace," through faith in the Saviour. 
By this he meant, that God will freely forgive the sins of 
all those who repent and put their trust in the Lord Jesus 
Christ. 

Now, my brethren, Christ told Nicodemus, in this con- 
(48) 






SIN A DISEASE. — CURED BY CHRIST. 49 

versation, just what you all must know and do in order to 
be saved. There is no man who can be saved without being 
born again, and believing in Christ. 

I cannot tell you, in one sermon, all that Christ said to 
Nicodemus ; so I will take one verse only, and explain that 
to you. The verse I am going to explain is this, " As 
Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must 
the Son of Man be lifted up : that whosoever believeth in 
him should not perish, but have everlasting life." In this 
verse our Saviour refers to something that happened several 
thousand years ago, in the time of Moses, and he compares 
his own death to it. This thing happened to the Israelites 
in the wilderness, whilst they were going from Egypt to 
Canaan. As it will help you to understand what Christ 
says in tlje text, I will give you the account of it which was 
written by Moses, who was present, and saw all that hap- 
pened. " And they," says Moses, in the book of Numbers, 
"journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, 
to compass (or go around) the land of Edom : and the soul 
of the people was much discouraged because of the way. 
And the people spake against God and against Moses, 
"Wherefore have ye brought us up out of the land of 
Egypt to die in the wilderness ; for there is no bread, nei- 
ther is there any water ; and our soul loatheth this light 
bread." Let us stop a moment here and think of the great 
sin of the Israelites. They were tired of marching through 
the wilderness, and became angry with God, and they mur- 
mured against him. They charged him with having brought 
them up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness ; they said 
there was no bread and water in the wilderness, when God 
had supplied their wants, and also said they hated the food 
God had provided for them. This was a grievous sin, and 

5 



50 SERMON IV. 

God punished them for it. Let us see what he did to 
them. Moses tells us that God " sent fiery serpents among 
the people, and they bit the people ; and much people of 
Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, 
We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and 
against thee ; pray unto the Lord that he take away the 
serpents from us : and Moses prayed for the people. And 
the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent and 
set it upon a pole : and it. shall come to pass, that every 
one that is bitten, when he looks upon it, shall live. And 
Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and 
it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when 
he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived." This is the ac- 
count given by Moses of what our Saviour refers to, when 
he says, " As Moses lifted up the serpent in tlie wilder- 
ness." There are four things in this account which you 
should notice very carefully, and try to remember. In the 
first place a dreadful evil had befallen the people on ac- 
count of their wickedness. Poisonous serpents had gotten 
in amongst them and bitten them, and they were dying all 
around. They could not get rid of the serpents, nor could 
they cure their bite. They had to go to Moses and ask 
him to pray to God to help them. Another thing you 
should notice is, that God gave them a cure for this evil, 
and a very simple cure. He told Moses to make a fiery 
serpent, (that is, a serpent of brass, which would shine 
like fire,) and put it upon a pole. Moses did as God com- 
manded. He made the serpent of brass, and put it upon 
a pole. He raised it up high, so that every Israelite might 
see it. A third thing you should notice, is what they were 
to do who had been bitten, that they might be healed. 
They were to look at the serpent of brass which was lifted 






SIN A DISEASE. — CURED BY CHRIST. 51 

up upon the pole. Of course, they were to trust in God's 
power to heal them. Looking at the brazen serpent could 
have done them no good, unless God's power had been 
there to heal them. Therefore, whilst they looked, it was 
necessary that they should have faith in God. One thing 
more you should notice in this account is, that whoever 
looked at the serpent that was lifted up did not die. God 
said that every one that was bitten should live when he 
looked at it, and when the serpent was lifted up, it hap- 
pened just as God said. 

These four things, as I have already said, you should 
observe very carefully, and lest you should forget them, I 
will tell you again what they are. First, these poor people 
were poisoned by the bite of these serpents, and could not 
cure themselves. Secondly, as they could not cure them- 
selves, they asked God to do it, and he gave them a very 
simple cure. He made Moses put a serpent of brass upon 
a pole in some place where every body could see it. 
Thirdly, those who were bitten were to look with faith upon 
the uplifted serpent. And lastly, whoever looked at it in 
faith did not die. 

And now, my dear brethren, having told you what hap- 
pened to the Israelites in the wilderness, I am going to 
tell you of something very much like it in which you are 
all concerned. 

In the first place then, I must tell you that all men are 
by nature afflicted with a terrible disease. It comes with 
them into the world. They are all poisoned from birth. 
And I will tell you how it is. That " old serpent the Devil," 
of whom we read in the Bible, bit Adam and Eve when they 
lived in the garden of Eden, and his bite poisoned them. 
And the disease did not stop there ; but they gave it to 



52 SERMON IV. 

their children, and after that every child got it from his 
parents. And so it has happened that, from the days of 
Adam until now, but one child has been born into this 
world who had not some of the same poison in him, which 
that " old serpent the Devil" put into Adam and Eve. 
That child was Jesus. So then we all have this disease by 
nature. But, perhaps, you want to know what kind of a 
disease it is, whether it is a disease of the body, and 
whether it can be cured by man ? It is not a disease of 
the body, and man cannot cure it. It is a disease of the 
soul, and God alone can cure it. It is the poison of sin of 
which I am speaking, which gets into the soul and goes all 
through it, just as the poison of the serpent gets into the 
body and goes all through it. And no man can cure him- 
self : nor can he find any other man who can. He may go 
from one end of the earth to the other, but he will not find 
any one who can give him a cure for this disease. He may 
find some who will say they can. Some will try it, and the 
disease may get a little better for a time, but it will soon 
be as bad and worse than ever. And the reason of this is, 
that the poison of sin cannot be gotten out of the soul by 
man. It sticks there in spite of all that man can do. 1 
will show you what I mean, by speaking of a thing which 
many of you have seen. Here is a tree. The root of it 
has been pierced by a poisonous worm. Its limbs are 
dying, its leaves are falling, its fruit is good for nothing. 
The owner of it determines to save it if he can, and make 
it bear fruit. Well, he cuts off all the dying branches. 
Very soon the buds begin to shoot again, and new branches 
are formed, and covered with leaves; and he begins to 
think it will live and bear fruit. But ah ! he will get no 
fruit from that tree. The root is still preyed upon by the 



SIN A DISEASE. — CURED BY CHRIST. 53 

worm ; the poison put into it by the worm is still in it, and 
in a little time the leaves begin to fade again, and the 
branches to die ; and this cannot be helped. The poison 
cannot be gotten out of the root. The tree at last is cut 
down and cast into the fire. Just so is it with those in 
whom the poison of sin is. They cannot be healed until 
by some means the poison is gotten out. Man cannot do 
this, and unless the great physician of souls comes to their 
relief, they must perish, perish in hell for evermore. Oh ! 
my dear hearers, this disease is far more terrible than any 
which afflicts the body. There are some- awful diseases of 
the body ; but the most they can do is to torture, and at 
last destroy the body. After this they have no more that 
they can do. But the disease which we have been con- 
sidering sticks to us for ever. It pursues us into eternity, 
and there torments both soul and body in hell. No man or 
angel, or created being of any kind, can prevent this. 

2. But there is a cure for this dreadful disease. God 
has, in great mercy, given us a cure for it. Think of the 
text, and you will see what it is. " As Moses lifted up the 
serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be 
lifted up : that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, 
but have everlasting life." " Even so must the Son of Man 
be lifted up." The Saviour twice used words like these 
while he was on earth. Once he said, " When ye shall 
have lifted up the Son of Man, then shall ye know that I 
am he." At another time he said, "And I, if I be lifted 
up, will draw all men unto me;" and we are told that " he 
said this, signifying what death he should die." From this 
we learn that our blessed Lord spoke, in the text, of his 
death, when he would be lifted up on the cross. Christ 
crucified ; Christ hanging on the cross, is .the remedy which 

5* 



54 SERMON IV. 

is offered to men perishing with this disease. And, my 
brethren in Christ crucified, we may find a perfect cure. 
In him there is just what we need, and all that we need. 
The Apostle Paul says, he is made unto us, " wisdom, and 
righteousness, and sanctijication, and redemption. 7 ' He 
has the grace which cleanses the heart and makes it pure, 
and the grace which forgiveth all our sins. So that, if we 
go to him, our spiritual disease may be healed. It is the 
duty of the ministers of the gospel to speak continually of 
Christ crucified, to sinful men. Whether those to whom 
they preach hear, -or not, still they must point to the cross, 
and, with John .the Baptist, cry, again and again, "Be- 
hold the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the 
world." Oh ! that you, my dying hearers, would take heed 
to our words, and look to him for salvation ! 

3. I have now told you about the disease of the soul, 
and pointed you to the cure which God has given. I will 
tell you, in the next place, how you are to use this remedy 
so that you will be saved. This is very important. For it 
will do you no good to have a remedy, unless you know 
how to use it. If you were sick, and the physician should 
tell you that a certain kind of medicine would cure you, 
this would do you no good, unless he should tell you when 
you must take it, and how much you must take, and all 
about it. Just so with this medicine for the sick soul ; you 
must know how to take it ; else, instead of curing you, it 
may help to destroy you. It has helped to destroy many 
because it was not taken in the right way. Be very care- 
ful, then, that you understand how to use this remedy. 
Now you cannot go to the cross in person, nor can you 
look with your eye upon Jesus hanging on it, as the Israel- 
ites did upon the brazen serpent. Yet, if you are healed 






SIN A DISEASE. — CURED BY CHRIST. 55 

and saved, it must be in the same way that the Israelites 
were. The Israelites were cured by the power of God. 
The serpent did not cure them. That was mere brass, 
which had no power to do them any good. God indeed 
told them that if they looked at it, they should be healed, 
and if they had not done this, they would have died. But 
still they were not healed by the brass, but by the power 
of God. And this power was exercised upon them, because 
they believed in the promise of God. In the same way is 
the poor sinner saved. He is saved by the power of God, 
because he believes in Jesus. He is saved by grace through 
faith. He looks in faith to the crucified Redeemer; he 
takes Christ for his Saviour ; he trusts in what he has done 
and suffered for him, and believes what he has promised in 
the Bible ; God has mercy upon his soul, heals its diseases, 
and gives him everlasting life. 

Some people are not willing to be saved in this way. 
They do not like to be saved "by grace through faith.'* 
They are too proud to take salvation as a free gift from 
God. They want to earn it by their good deeds. Some 
think that if they are what the world calls good, if they do 
not lie, or cheat, or steal, or swear, or get drunk, if they 
are kind and just, and peaceable, they deserve heaven. 
Others think if they go to church, and are baptized, and 
take the sacrament, they have done something very good, 
and ought to go to heaven when they die. Well, my hear- 
ers, this not God's way, and if it is not God's way it can- 
not be the right way. We are told in Scripture to cast 
away our own righteousness, to consider it as filthy rags, 
not to trust in it, or think that it is fit to be offered to God. 
I do not mean that Christians are not to be good. I 
will show you presently that they ought to be the best 



56 SERMON IV. 

people in the world ; but I mean to say that they must not 
trust in their good works for salvation; they must not 
glory in them as many do, but they must trust in Christ 
alone, and glory in nothing but his cross. 

But you must take care, or this blessed truth, " salvation 
by grace through faith," will prove your ruin, as it has the 
ruin of thousands. Perhaps some of you will say, as some 
did in the days of Paul, if we are saved in this way, we 
will go on sinning ; we need not do good works. If faith 
saves us, all we have to do, is to believe that Christ died 
for us. Many have talked in this way, and acted as they 
talked ; and at last gone down to hell ; and they perished 
because they had not the right sort of faith. For you must 
remember that there are two kinds of faith. There is a 
living faith, and there is a dead faith ; but there is only 
one kind of faith which saves ; that is living faith. If you 
wish to be healed by Christ, and go to heaven, you must 
have this same sort of faith. Then it is very important for 
you to know whether you have living faith. How can you 
tell this ? Why, you find it out in the same way that you 
find out whether a tree is a good tree. You go into an 
orchard. You see a tree which has bad fruit upon it. You 
say at once, that is not a good tree : " A good tree bring- 
eth forth good fruit." "A good tree cannot bring forth 
evil fruit." You know that these are the very words of 
the Saviour. Well, rt is just so with our faith. If it lets 
us go on in our evil ways, and live as children of the world, 
it is not living faith. It is dead, and worth nothing. But, 
if our faith turns us from our evil ways, and makes us walk 
as children of the light, then it is living faith, and will save 
\s. But I will be more particular on this point, for I am 
*ery anxious that you should understand it perfectly. I 






SIN A DISEASE. — CURED BY CHRIST. 57 

will tell you some of the fruits of faith. One fruit is re- 
pentance. If you truly believe in Christ, you will be 
heartily sorry on account of your sins, as a good child who 
has disobeyed his parents is sorry that he has done so. 
And this sorrow for sin, if it is really felt, will cause you 
to forsake sin. You cannot truly repent, without forsaking 
your sins. I do not say that you will never sin, for the 
word of God tells us, that "if we say that we have no sin, 
we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." But 
still, I say, you will forsake your sins. You will not love 
and practise them as the impenitent sinner does. If you 
are overtaken in a fault you will not excuse it as sinners 
do, but you will confess it with shame and confusion of face ; 
you will fall down on your knees before God, and, with 
tears in your eyes cry to God for mercy. This is one fruit 
of faith. Another fruit of faith is love. He who expects 
to be saved by Jesus must have the same mind that was in 
him ; and you all know how full of love he was. The same 
spirit of love will be in you, if you have living faith, you 
will love God. You will think of all that he has done for 
you, especially for your souls. You will look at the cross, 
and see the Son of God hanging on it, bleeding and dying 
for you ; and, when you do this, you cannot help loving 
God and the blessed Saviour, any more than a good child 
can help loving a tender father and mother. And this love 
will make you anxious to please God by keeping his com- 
mandments, as a child who truly loves his parents desires 
to please them by doing what they command or wish. 
Then again you will love your fellow-creatures, and espe- 
cially your Christian brethren. You will not quarrel with 
them and try to do them harm by speaking evil of them. 
As much as possible you will live peaceably with all men. 



58 SERMON IV. 

You will even love your enemies as the Saviour directs, 
You will bless those who persecute you and pray for those 
who treat you badly, and overcome evil with good." This 
is another fruit of living faith. And I might go on for a 
long time and tell you about peace, and joy, and meekness, 
and gentleness, and patience, and many other fruits of 
faith ; but I have not time. I have said enough to show 
you what sort of faith in Christ you should have ; and now 
I say, if you have not this kind of faith, your faith is vain, 
you are yet in your sins, your disease is not healed, and 
you must perish for ever. 

4. But I trust some of you have a living faith ; and, if 
so, I say to you, in the last place, if you continue in this 
faith, you will be saved with an everlasting salvation. 
And I give you God's word for it. "As Moses lifted up 
the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man 
be lifted up : that whosoever believeth in him should not 
perish, but have everlasting life." This is the solemn 
promise of him who cannot lie, and who is able to perform 
what he promises. If it would do you any good, I could 
add to this, out of the Scriptures, a hundred promises like 
it. But it is not necessary. One promise from the lips 
of the faithful God is as good as a thousand. Oh ! you 
cannot fear that- if you look to the crucified Saviour, if you 
lean upon him with a living faith, that you will perish. 
Not a single sinner who goes to him in this way will ever 
be cast away. " Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall 
be as white as snow ; though they be red like crimson they 
shall be as wool." Whosoever believeth in him shall not 
perish, but shall have everlasting life." 

And now, my dear hearers, let me ask if you recollect 
what has been said. I will repeat it in a few words. I 



SIN A DISEASE.— CURED BY CHRIST. 59 

have shown you that your souls are diseased, and that, un- 
less you are healed, you must perish eternally. Then I 
told you that God alone can save, and pointed you to the 
crucified Saviour as the only remedy. Next I showed you 
how you must apply the remedy, that is, by a living faith ; 
and lastly, I showed you that, if you lay hold on Christ 
in this way, you cannot perish, but must be brought by him 
to glory. 

Perhaps you think I have detained you long enough, but 
I wish to say a few words more. I want to ask you all 
whether you have been to Christ and had this terrible dis- 
ease cured in the way that has been mentioned. I am 
afraid that many of you have not. Ah ! I am afraid there 
are some of you who never will. I am afraid you will let 
the disease run on until it ends in the everlasting death of 
your souls. 

My dear friends, what are you about ? Why will you 
die ? Are you resolved to perish, in spite of all that a 
tender Saviour has done for your salvation. Oh ! what 
madness ! Suppose one of those Israelites who were bitten 
by those poisonous serpents had refused to look upon the 
serpent of brass and be healed. Would you not say he 
must have been a madman ? Yet this is just what you 
have done, are doing every day. You are poisoned by 
gin, and must die a worse death than that of the Israelites, 
unless you are cured. God offers you a remedy, but you 
cast it from you. Again ; suppose you were standing on 
the bank of the river, and were to see a man drowning. 
If there was a boat near, you would jump into it and row 
out into the stream to help him out of the water. But 
suppose, when you got to the place where he was drowning, 
he should say you should not help him out of the wa+er. 



60 SERMON IV. 

« 

Would you not say lie was a madman ? But this is what 
you are doing. You are perishing, and Christ offers to 
help you, but you will not let him. Is not this madness ? 
Yes, my hearers, it is worse than madness ; it is wicked- 
ness. Oh ! it is wicked, very wicked, for you to treat the 
blessed Saviour in this way. And you must remember 
that he will punish you for it, unless you repent and fly to 
him for salvation. Kind, and gentle, and tender, as he 
now is, it will be a fearful thing to fall into his hands in 
the day of judgment. How will you then escape if you 
now neglect his great salvation ? We are told in Scrip- 
ture, "he that despised Moses's law died without mercy." 
And then this fearful question is asked, " Of how much 
sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, 
who hath trodden under foot the Son of God ?" May God 
make you to feel your guilt and danger, that you may take 
refuge in Jesus, before it is for ever too late. 

In the West India islands there is a beautiful tree called 
the manchaneel. It bears a kind of apple which looks rich 
and delicious, something like the golden pippin. Its smell 
and appearance arO both very tempting. All who take it 
in their hands are tempted to eat it. But to eat of it is 
instant death. Its sap and juice are so poisonous that a 
few drops of it, put on the skin, will raise blisters, and 
give great pain. When the Indians used to go to war 
they dipped their arrows in the juice, so that all whom 
those arrows struck were poisoned and died. But think 
now, how good God is to men. It is a fact, that you can 
never find one of these trees, without finding near it another 
tree, either the white wood, or the fig tree, the juice of 
either of which, if used in time, is a certain cure for the 
poison of the manchaneel. V . 



SIN A DISEASE. — CURED BY CHRIST. 61 

Now this is just like sin, and salvation by Jesus Christ. 
The manchaneel is sin, which poisons the soul ; the white 
wood, or fig tree, is salvation by Jesus, which destroys sin. 
Like this poisonous apple, sin looks pleasant to the eye, 
and all men who handle it, and eat of it, are poisoned and 
die. Many people think there is no harm in this or that 
little sin. They say, " Oh ! it is only a small sin. It will 
not hurt us." But who would eat only a little poison ? 
The least quantity of the juice of that poisonous tree will 
cause death. The smallest sin, if not forgiven of God, will 
ruin your soul in eternity. Sin is a poisonous fruit that 
you must not even taste. No, it ought not to be even 
looked upon with pleasure. Satan has dipped his darts in 
the poison of sin, and points them at your heart. All 
whom they strike die the most painful and bitter death, 
unless they go in time to Jesus Christ, and trust him as 
their gracious and all-healing physician, to cure them. 

"My friends, all of you have looked upon the poisonous 
tree of sin. You have desired it and eaten of it. If you 
are not cured of it you will surely die. " The soul that 
sinneth, it shall surely die." There is only one physician 
who can cure you. He is always at hand. It is the Lord 
Jesus Christ. " The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us 
from all sin." He pours the oil of consolation into our 
wounded hearts. He soothes the troubled conscience. He 
washes out all the poison of our sins, and makes us pure 
and fit for heaven. 

C. M. 

Alas ! and did my Saviour "bleed ? 

And did my Sovereign die ? 
Would he devote that sacred head 

For such a worm as I ? 

6 



62 SERMON IV. 

Was it for crimes, that I had done, 

He groaned upon the tree ? 
Amazing pity ! grace unknown ! 

And love "beyond degree ! 

Well .might the sun in darkness hide, 

And shut his glories in, 
When God, the mighty Maker, died 

For man, the creature's sin. 

Thus might I hide my blushing face, 

While his dear cross appears ; 
Dissolve, my heart, in thankfulness, 

And melt, my eyes, to tears. 

But drops of tears can ne'er repay 

The debt of love I owe ; 
Here, Lord, I give myself away — 

; Tis all that I can do. 

Questions. — 1. What must take place in a man, before he can be 
saved ? 2. Are all men by nature sinners ? 3. What is sin said to 
be like? 4. What was the brazen serpent? 5. What did Moses 
hang it up for? 6. Who has been hung upon the cross for us to 
look at ? 7. What is it to look to Christ? 8. Can Christ heal us of 
our sins ? 9. What does he say will be our portion if we do not 
believe in him ? 



SERMON V. 

• — ■ 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

" What meanest thou, oh sleeper ? arise, call upon thy God ; if so 
be that God will think upon us, that we perish not." Jonah i. 6. 

There was once, far away in the East, a great city- 
called Nineveh. It was sixty miles round, and within 
were more than six hundred thousand people. But no 
Christian Sabbath was known there. No sound of the 
church-bell invited the people to the house of God. No 
company of Christians met to offer up prayer and praise 
to His name. The people thought not of God. They 
loved not His laws. They all lived in sin. Their wicked- 
ness rose up, as it were, in the sight of heaven. For a 
long, long time, God was patient with them. At last he 
could bear with them no more. He grew weary of their 
sins ; and said he would destroy the city and all the people 
in it. But He would not do this without giving them warn- 
ing, and still further time to repent. He, therefore, com- 
manded a man, whose name was Jonah, to go and cry 
out in the streets " forty days and Nineveh shall be 
destroyed." But the people of Nineveh were rich, and 
proud, and great. Jonah could not see how God could 
find it in His heart to destroy so great a city, and so 
many thousand people. He was afraid to go to them on 

(63) 



64 SERMON V. 

such an errand. Instead of going to Nineveh he went 
down to a city on the sea shore, called Joppa, and got 
ready to set sail for another land. Presently the wind 
blew, and the ship moved off like a swan upon the water. 
It danced on merrily, from wave to wave, until Jonah 
could see nothing but the blue sea around him. I 
think I can almost see that ship, with its white sails, 
shining in the sun, its tall masts bending before the breeze, 
and Jonah standing with an air of careless confidence, on 
its deck, just as if he had really found a hiding place from 
God. Vain and foolish man ! not to know that if he had 
gone down to hell, God was there ; or if he had taken the 
wings of the morning to go to the uttermost parts of the 
earth, even there would God be." Upon that ship Jonah 
was an entire stranger. Having no acquaintances and 
nothing to do, he went down into the lower part of the ship 
and laid down quietly to rest. A little cloud was seen at 
last to rise up far off over the sea ; and presently the skies 
were covered with blackness. The wind whistled through 
the rigging, and swept a tempest round the ship. It was 
carried like a cork on the waters. The captain and the 
sailors grew pale with alarm ; and every man of them 
prayed to his false God to save them from a watery grave. 
The goods and the wares they had on board were all cast 
into the sea, to lighten the vessel of its load. But still 
the storm did not pass away. Death seemed to stare them 
all in the face ; and they knew not what to do. In this 
terrible hour the captain thought of his strange passenger, 
Jonah. He was about to give up all as lost, but thought 
he would seek him, to see whether he could do something 
for them. And where does he find him ? Is Jonah alone 
on his knees, before God, in deep sorrow for his dis 






THE SLEEPING SINNER AWAKENED. 65 

obedience ? Is he looking out upon the storm and crying 
for God's mercy on him ? No, he is down in a dark corner 
fast asleep on his pillow. He has thought nothing of the 
storm ; he knows nothing of his own danger. Even the 
common sailors on that ship, who all worshipped false gods, 
feel more concern for their souls than the disobedient 
Jonah does. You may learn from this how sleepy, and 
careless, and stupid, the practice of sin will make any man. 
The man who will not listen to the warnings of God, who 
will not obey the commands of God, will always become 
blinder, and colder, and deader, in sin. Jonah had refused 
to do what God told him. And now he can lie down and 
sleep quietly, while the wrath of God rages over him. 
This is the way that the sinner sleeps, even while the anger 
of God is rising like a tempest against him. This was 
Jonah in the storm. When the master of the ship found 
him, he was lying there, as unconcerned as if he was 
sleeping on a summer's day, under some cooling shade, 
while the breezes of heaven were fanning him to still 
sweeter rest. He was astonished at the man's stupidity. 
No wonder he cried out to him " what meanest thou, oh 
sleeper?" 

But let me tell you that the storm that sweeps over the 
sea is not the only storm, and Jonah that laid down to 
sleep in that ship, is not the only man that sleeps in the 
storm. I see a sleeping Jonah in every careless sinner 
here ; and I hear the roaring of a coming storm in every 
threat of God against your sins. You may not fear it, but 
you are sleeping on the brink of ruin. There is a storm 
of wrath raging round and beneath you ; and I call upon 
you just as that ship captain called upon Jonah, " what 
meanest thou, oh sleeper?" 

6* 



6$ SERMON V. 

But I hear some of you answer, " No, we are not asleep." 
" Our eyes are wide open." Yes, but your minds and 
hearts are asleep. And, if you will listen, I will tell you 
how you are asleep, and how that sleep is far more dan- 
gerous and awful than ever Jonah's was. 

You are asleep in your carelessness about religion. I 
cannot believe that any of you can think there is no such 
thing as religion. You see how it has changed the hearts 
and lives of some of your fellow-servants. You see it 
makes the lazy man industrious — the dishonest man honest 
— the lying man truthful — the high-tempered man mild 
and kind. You see how it comforts the sick man in his 
sickness, and makes him patient, and ready, and willing to 
die. And when you see it do all this, you surely must 
know that there is such a thing as religion. But you tell me 
that you know many professors of religion who are just as 
bad as you are. You think, if you can't be any better than 
they are, you don't wish to be Christians. But these are 
only professors of religion. There is a great difference 
between professing to be religious, and being religious sure 
enough. Just as much difference as there is between a 
soldier putting on his uniform to show that he is a soldier, 
and his going out with his musket to shed his blood on 
the battle field. You tell me that you know one man who 
says he is religious, and yet he trades on Sunday just as 
the people of Nineveh did ; another, you say, will not trade 
with you at all, unless he can cheat you ; another does not 
stick to the truth in what he says ; another gets very angry 
without any good cause, and will sometimes swear and 
rage. And others do a great many things that you know 






THE SLEEPING SINNER AWAKENED. 67 

to be wicked. You know one woman who has two or three 
husbands ; and another who quarrels with every one around 
her, whether they belong to her own church or not. But 
these are mere professors of religion. You must not judge 
of religion by their lives. These persons are Sunday 
Christians, They put on their religion with their Sun- 
day clothes, just to go to church in. But you must re- 
member that they are not the only hypocrites in the world. 
You have known men and women who pretended to be 
your friends, and yet turned out to be your enemies. Still 
you know there is such a thing as friendship. You have 
known men who pretended to love their country, and yet, 
in time of war, they turned and fought against it. Still 
you know there is such a thing as love of country. You 
must not judge, then, that because there are many pre- 
tenders to religion, there is no such thing as religion. You 
do not judge that, because there is counterfeit money, there 
is no genuine money. Indeed, if there was no real money, 
there would be no counterfeits. The counterfeit proves 
that the man who made it knew something of the value of 
good money. And the pretender to religion proves that 
there - is such a thing as real religion. Then you must 
know that there is such a thing as religion. If you do 
not know it, you have no excuse for your ignorance. Oh ! 
yes, my friends, you know it so well, that you even expect 
to be Christians yourselves, one of these days. But you 
feel no interest on the subject now. You have no fear 
about sickness or death now. God is not in all your 
thoughts. The hope of heaven does not give you pleasure. 
The thought of hell does not alarm you. You are, in fact, 



SERMON V. 

in sin; just like Jonah. Not long ago you saw 
one of your fellow-servants cut down, without warning, by 
death. Or you, yourselves, were brought down to a bed 
of long and dangerous illness. These things may have 
alarmed your heart for a time. They made you tremble 
as Jonah, in his sleep, may have trembled, with the shak- 
ing of the ship. But still you slept on. You have some- 
times seen a lazy man who has made it his practice to lie 
in bed until a late hour in the morning. You have tried 
to wake him up. He would answer you, and probably ask 
some question about the weather — whether it was stormy 
or sunshine. But he would soon turn over and fall again 
into the arms of sleep. This is the way you sleep in sin, 
and in carelessness about religion. Every now and then 
you will become half roused, and say, like the lazy sleeper, 
"Yes, I will be up presently." But still you fall back, 
and sleep on. We tell you that your day of grace is going 
away. We beg you to wake up and repent. But you 
answer, " Oh ! I cannot now. I have other things to do 
now. When I am done these, I will try to get ready for 
heaven." We tell you that you are sleeping, on your 
voyage to another world ; that you ought to be up, making 
preparations for the storm that will soon rise round you. 
But you say, " Some of these days I shall feel more like 
it. Then I will wake up to the subject of religion." Oh! 
you Jonah, sleeping in the storm, wake up ! wake up ! 
"What meanest thou, oh sleeper? Arise, call upon thy 
God." 

Come, listen. I have something now to say of more in- 
terest and importance to you than all I have yet said. 



THE SLEEPING SINNER AWAKENED. 69 

You have slept long enough in sin. You have taken no 
care of your souls. You have never lived one day by faith 
on the Son of God. Remember, " every one of you must 
give account of himself to God-" 

1. "What meanest thou, oh sleeper," by this neglect of 
thy soul f Have you thought what the soul is ? Do you 
know any thing of its value ? I have known some people 
to act as if they did not know, or had forgotten, that they 
had souls. I will tell you as well as I can what the soul 
is. You know, as well as I do, that there is something in 
you that thinks. The time of corn planting will soon be 
here again. But, before we can begin the work, you will 
have some thinking to do. You must think what will be 
the best day to begin, and then what is necessary to be 
done before you can begin. You must think whether the 
corn to be planted is good and sound ; whether the hoes 
are all in order, and who must lay off, and who must plant. 
Now, if I should ask you what it is that does this think- 
ing f you would tell me in a moment, that it is the mind. 
The mind thinks what is to be done, and then the body 
obeys its directions and does it. But suppose, instead of 
going into the field to work, God should lay you down on a 
bed of sickness, and you should lose your sight. Could you 
not still think how the horses and the fields once looked ? 
Then suppose you should lose your feeling, or your hands 
should become paralyzed. Could you not still think how 
the plough felt solid and heavy ? Then suppose you should 
lose your hearing. Could you not still think how the birds 
once sang so sweetly ? And so, if you should lose your 
hands, and eyes, and ears, and smell, and taste, and feel- 



70 SERMON V. 

ing, could you not still think how things once looked, and 
felt, and sounded, and smelt, and tasted? Now, do you 
not see that there is something in you which will live when 
all these different parts of the body are dead ? This living 
part is what thinks. We call it the Spirit, or Soul. It 
will go on thinking when the body shall be turned again to 
dust. It is this part of you that can now look back and 
think of all the great sins you have committed from your 
childhood to this hour. It is this part of you that can be 
made happy or miserable both here and hereafter. It is 
this part of you that troubles you when you have done 
wrong, and makes you feel happy when you have done 
right. This part of you can never die. It is born for 
eternity. It must either be happy for ever with God, or 
it must dwell in darkness and sorrow for ever in hell. 
There is no end to its existence ; no end to its happiness ; 
no end to its misery. Oh ! if this be so, can you not see 
that your souls must be of infinite and eternal value ? 
"What meanest thou, oh sleeper," by treating it with so 
much neglect ? Have you ever thought of what it cost the 
Son of God, your blessed Redeemer? Have you never 
heard how he put off all the riches and honours of heaven, 
and came here a poor wanderer on the earth, and was 
despised by men, and was persecuted, and was tempted by 
Satan, and bore the wrath of God, and was cruelly cruci- 
fied, that he might convince you of the value of your souls ; 
that he might bring you back from the power of Satan, and 
make you children of heaven and of glory ? Oh ! sleeper, 
what meanest thou? Did Jesus die to save your soul? 
And yet will you sleep on through life, until the storm of 






THE SLEEPING SINNER AWAKENED. 71 

God's wrath shall cry out against you ? Did Jesus show 
such love for you ? And yet will you have no love for 
yourselves ? Oh ! hide your face in shame and guilt, and 
call upon God to have mercy on you before it be for ever 
too late. 

2. "What meanest thou, oh sleeper," by this slumber 
over the ragings of eternal punishment ? The word of the 
Eternal God tells us of a lake that burneth with fire and 
brimstone prepared for the devil and his angels ; that there 
all the ungodly, all that forget God, all the wicked, shall 
be cast ; that there their worm dieth not, and their fire is 
not quenched, and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up 
for ever and ever ; that they shall have no rest day nor 
night; and that he will pour out "indignation and wrath, 
tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth 
evil." These are dreadful warnings. There are not many 
people who like to hear them. But they are warnings 
given by that blessed Saviour who died to save you from 
all the shame and sorrow of that dark world. You may 
try not to think of this world of punishment ; but this will 
not save you from it. You may sleep soundly over it, but 
this will not remove it. Suppose, as you are passing along, 
you should meet a traveller who should ask you to direct 
him in the way to a certain place, and you were to tell him 
that there was a good looking bridge on the way, but that 
he must go round it, for it would not bear him, and if he 
attempted to cross it, he would lose his life. What would 
you think if you should see him take out his handkerchief 
to blindfold himself, in order that he might be better able 
to avoid it ? You would say in your heart " why that man 
must be deranged." But he is not half so much deranged 
as the sinner who hopes to escape the punishments of hell 



72 SERMON V. 

by trying not to think about them. Jonah thought he 
would escape by lying down in a dark corner of the ship 
to sleep. But this did not keep back the storm. The very 
waves of the sea rose up and cried out for vengeance against 
him. It was not enough for the captain and his men to 
cry out to their false gods. It was not enough to cast out 
the wares and the goods. Jonah himself had to be cast 
overboard. Jonah had sinned, and Jonah could not escape. 
The captain and his men caught him, and cast him head- 
long into the sea. As he went down into the "waves, a 
great fish swallowed him, and bore him away, and after 
three days cast him up alive on the sea shore. 

My friends, God rides upon the storms, and directs the 
winds, and holds the sea, and the world, and all things in 
it, in the hollow of his hand. There is not a sinner here 
that can hide from his eye, or escape from his hand. He 
can arm ten thousand things this moment to destroy you. 
He can strike you down with the lightning of heaven, or 
he can poison you by the sting of a little spider. And let 
me beg you to remember that you are this moment under 
his sentence of eternal death. He would be perfectly just 
in casting you down to hell this moment, without another 
warning, or another word of instruction. " He that be- 
lieveth not," says our Lord, " is condemned already." " He 
that believeth not the Son shall not see life ; but the wrath 
of God abideth on him." 

I know there are those who would try to make you be- 
lieve that there is no punishment in another world. But 
they are enemies to God and to your souls. You must not 
believe what they say. When they come to die, you will 
see how much they are afraid to meet God. A great and 
rich man in one of our towns in the west was once taken 



•I 



THE SLEEPING SINNER AWAKENED. 73 

sick and lost his mind. When he recovered from his sick- 
ness he was still a deranged man. He seemed never to 
know his own wife or children. He forgot all his old 
friends. For seven long years he was in this unhappy 
state. One day, while sitting in the room where his 
daughters were, he sprang from his chair, and cried out in 
great joy, "thank God, I am out at last." I cannot de- 
scribe the scene of that hour. He embraced and kissed 
his daughters. He wept with joy on the bosom of his wife, 
and acted as if he had not seen them for many years. At 
last he said to them, " For seven long years I have been in 
a burning hell. It was a horrible cavern of lakes, and 
rocks, and mountains of fire. I saw millions there, but 
could find no friend. I was ever burning, yet never con- 
sumed. Ever dying, yet never dead. No light of the 
sun shined there, and no smile of God was seen. I remem- 
bered there every sinful thing I had done, and was tor- 
mented in my soul. I thought of the sufferings and death 
of that blessed Saviour, and how I had treated him. There 
was no rest to my soul day nor night. I had no hope there. 
Yet I wandered in madness to find some way of escape. 
At last, as I stood on the top of a high rock blazing with 
heat, I saw in the distance a little opening like the light of 
the sky. I jumped headlong down, and with all my powers 
made my way towards it. At last I climbed up to it, and 
worked and struggled through ; and, blessed be God, here 
I am again, with my beloved wife and children." Now, my 
friends, suppose there is no such place as hell. Suppose 
some one should be so foolish as to hope that there is no such 
place. Yet remember, that if God can make a man's 
own mind such a hell as this, while he is yet in this world, 
he can find a still more fearful hell for him in the world to 

7 



74 SERMON V. . 

come. It was folly in Jonah to sleep in the storm at sea. 
But oh ! it is blind and stupid madness in you to be so 
thoughtless of the dreadful punishments that await you 
beyond the grave. " What meanest thou, oh sleeper ? 
arise, call upon thy God ; if so be that God will think upon 
you, that you perish not." 

Yes, I entreat you, as you value your soul, as you would 
escape these eternal burnings, call upon your God. The 
master of the ship seemed to doubt whether God would 
hear the prayers of Jonah or not. But I tell you, in the 
name of my master, Jesus, that whosoever will call upon 
him, in true repentance and faith, shall be saved. When 
you go from this place, then, do not go to forget what I 
now tell you ; do not go to lie down again in sleep and 
sin ; do not go to do any thing that is wrong and bad. But 
go to pour out your soul before God. Beg him to forgive 
you for all your sins against him. Beg him, in the name 
of that adorable Saviour who shed his own blood, to wash 
out your sins. Beg him to have mercy on you and to forgive 
you all that is passed. Say, in the words of that broken- 
hearted publican, " God be merciful to me a sinner." Say, 
with St. Peter, as he was about to sink in the waves, 
"Lord save, or I perish." Do this truly and faithfully, 
and Jesus has pledged himself to save you. He says to 
you, " Look unto me, and be ye saved, all ye ends of the 
earth." He will not let the waves overflow you, nor the 
fire burn you. His blood will wash away all your sins. 
As I live, says God, I have no pleasure in the death of a 
sinner, but that he turn from his way and live. " Turn ye, 
turn ye, for why will ye die ?" " God so loved the world, 
that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth 
on him might not perish, but have everlasting life." 



THE SLEEPING SINNER AWAKENED. 15 

L. M. 

There is a God who reigns above ; 

The Lord of heaven, and earth, and seas; 
I fear his wrath, I ask his love, 

And with my lips I'll sing his praise. 

There is a law which he hath made, 

To teach us all what we must do ; 
And his commands must be obeyed, 

For they are holy, just, and true. 

There is an hour when I must die ; 

Nor do I know how soon 'twill come ; 
Thousands of sinners strong as I, 

Are called by death to hear their doom. 

Let me improve the hours I have, 

Before the day of grace is fled ; 
There's no repentance in the grave, 

Nor pardon offered to the dead. 

Questions. — 1. Who did God send to Nineveh? 2. Why did ho 
send him there? 3. Did Jonah go at once? 4. What happened to 
him on the sea ? 5. Do you know any other sleepers besides Jonah ? 
6. Who are sleeping in greater danger than Jonah was ? 7. Why is 
their sleep more dangerous ? 8. Have sinners any excuse for sleep- 
ing in sin ? 9. Why should you wake up from your sins ? 10. What 
is your soul? 11. Can your soul ever die? 12. Is your soul in 
danger of eternal punishment? 13. Can you think there is no hell? 
14. Does the Bible say there is such a place? 15. Can God make a 
man's own mind a hell ? 16. Is there any way of escape for sinners 
from sin ? 17. Can every sinner certainly be saved by that way ? 
18. What is that way? 



SERMON VI. 

JONAH CAST INTO THE SEA; OR, THE SINNER 
UNDER CONVICTION. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

And he said unto them, Take me up and cast me forth into the 
sea. — Jonah i. 12. 

That was a dark and stormy day when the ship master 
went down to wake up Jonah from his sleep. The very 
heavens had turned black at his sin. The waves of the 
sea rolled in anger until they were grey with foam. And 
God seemed to frown in fury upon the ship, and all that 
was in it. As Jonah came up from his sleeping place, he 
gaw the whole ship's company assembled together. They 
were about to cast lots to see whether they could not find 
out the sinner. Jonah went forward, with a heavy heart, 
to take his part in this trial. But what must have been 
his shame and distress when he found that the lot fell on 
him ! Jonah was a righteous man. But he had sinned, 
and God was determined to expose and punish that sin. 
Learn from this how God hates the sins, even of those who 
love him ; and know, certainly, that your sins will be found 
out. When Jonah saw that the lot fell on him, he did not 
try to hide his sin. He told them who he was, and why he 
(76) 









THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 77 

was there. He said he was a Hebrew, and "feared the 
Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and dry land." 
He told them that God had ordered him to go to Nineveh, 
and warn the people that he was about to destroy the city. 
But that he was afraid to do it, and was then flying " from 
the presence of the Lord." The sailors were heathen, but 
they reproved him for his sin. They said, " why hast thou 
done this ?" But there* was no time then for many words. 
The ship was rolling and creaking in the waves. Nearly 
every thing they had on board was cast into the sea. 
Yet this did not calm the tempest. Then they turned 
to Jonah, and said, " What shall we do unto you to make 
the sea calm?" By this time Jonah felt, in his heart, what 
a great sinner he was. He saw how foolish and wicked it 
was to try to hide from God's eye, or escape from God's 
hand. "Take me up," said he, "and cast me forth into 
the sea ; so shall the sea be calm unto you ; for I know that 
for my sake this great tempest is come upon you." But 
they did not fly upon him and cast him over. They tried 
again to save the ship. They worked at their oars. But 
the sea fought against them and drove them back. They 
could not come to the land. They cried to God to save 
them.' - But all would not do. At last they took up Jonah 
and cast him forth into the sea. Then the sea ceased from 
its raging. As Jonah went down into the water, the Lord 
sent a great fish to swallow him. Far down into the deep 
waters did this fish carry him. None of us can tell what 
were his feelings there. But certainly he must have felt 
that all was lost with him, that he would never again see 
the light of the sun. What a time of trouble and sorrow 

7* 







78 SERMON VI. 

must this have been to him ! Yet Jonah prayed. From 
that dark closet of the sea, his heart sent up its cry to 
heaven, " God be merciful to me a sinner." And there, 
far down beneath the mountain waves of the sea, God 
heard him. And after three days and three nights, God 
" spake unto the fish, and it vomited Jonah out on the dry 
land." 

Come, now, go with me to the sea shore, and let us look 
at Jonah there. Let us hear what he has to say about his 
feelings and experience in the storm and in the deep. He 
has known what it is to sin, and what it is to be convinced 
of sin. He has known what it is to be in great trouble, 
and what it is to be brought out of that trouble. We may 
learn a lesson from his history that will be good for our souls, 

1. When Jonah was waked up, he saw that he had sinned 
against G-od. 

He did not at the first tell this to his companions in trouble. 
No doubt he thought he would keep it in his own heart as 
long as he could ; and he may have said to himself, " It 
may be that the storm will pass away. But as he looked 
on the troubled sea, and felt the quivering and reeling of 
the ship beneath him, and heard the loud and angry voice 
of the heavens above, he knew that it was his sin that 
brought all that trouble. When our Saviour was about to 
leave his disciples in this wicked world, he said to them, I 
will send my Holy Spirit, who shall convince the world of 
sin. You have heard a great deal said about conviction 
of sin. I pray God that he may make you now feel some- 
thing of it in your hearts. It is no new doctrine. It is 
as old as sin itself. Our first father, Adam, felt it. So did 
Cain, after he slew his brother ; and all that have ever 
turned from sin to God. Here we learn that Jonah felt it 









THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 79 

before he could be saved. And so must you, and every 
other sinner, know what conviction for sin is, before you 
can go into heaven. God has been trying in every way to 
teach it to you. When you begin to learn it, you will feel 
it in your hearts. You may not talk about it to any one. 
Like Jonah, you may try to keep it to yourself. Yet, 
like him, you will feel in your hearts that you have sinned 
against Grod. The world may look bright to others, but it 
will look dark to you. Sometimes you may try to lift up 
your heart, and say, "God be merciful to me a sinner." 
This feeling in your heart is brought about in a great many 
different ways. Sometimes by sickness, sometimes by ser- 
mons, sometimes by the death of friends, sometimes by 
thinking on your own dangerous state as a sinner. But 
God, by his Holy Spirit, is doing it all. No storm may 
drive you on the sea. No winds and waves may come to 
wake you up and show you your sins. But Jesus, who died 
for you ; Jesus, who prays at the right hand of God for 
you ; Jesus, who watches over you in all your wanderings 
from him ; this Jesus sends out the Holy Spirit in search 
of you. He comes into your very heart. He shows you 
your sins. He makes you look at them ; and, as you look, 
he turns them over and over, and tells you of their guilt. 
He gives to them a colour and a character you never saw 
in them before. He holds them up before your eyes, and 
tells you that God looks at them. He tells you that God 
has written down every wicked word, and thought, and 
wish, and act of your life. He tells you, too, how pure 
and good a being God is ; and how he must have hated 
your sins to give his only Son to die, that he might be able 
to forgive you. He shows you that God must be angry 
with you ; that he must one day punish you. You hear no 



80 SERMON IV. 

voice from the clouds, telling you all this ; no lightning 
flashes conviction into your minds ; no thunder crashes on 
your ear, and tells you that you have sinned against God. 
But it is a " still small voice," that whispers in your soul. 
It comes to you while on your bed, in the silent midnight ; 
or when in the field ; or when sitting, with your needle, at 
your daily work ; or while some little child reads to you, 
with a stammering tongue, the gospel of your precious Sa- 
viour. This Holy Spirit makes you think of your past 
life, and how you have forgotten God, and how you have 
slighted and rejected all the love of that bleeding Saviour. 
He tells you that your whole life has been a life of sins 
before God and against God. He says to you, "For all 
these things God will bring you into judgment." I know 
that some of you have felt something of this. It was not 
the voice of man. It was the Holy Spirit, striving with 
you as the winds strove with Jonah. In every such con- 
vinced sinner, I see a Jonah, waked up to see his danger. 

2. Jonah tells us that he condemned himself. He did 
not try to excuse himself. He did not say that he could 
not help his sin ; that his natural fears had forced him to 
commit it. He felt and knew that he ought to be punished. 
He said to the other men, " Take me up and cast me for 
into the sea." I read, in an interesting little book, called 
"Family Servants," of a poor African girl, who was 
brought, when quite young, from the wild woods of her 
native land, to this country. She was the daughter of a 
king. Her father was at war with a neighbouring king. 
While she was at the spring one day, the enemy came upon 
her and took her away. She was brought here, and sold 
to a gentleman in Virginia. She could not speak our lan- 
guage, and could not tell her name. He cabled her Bella* 






THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 81 

Poor Bella was very sad to think she could never again see 
her dear father and mother. But her mistress was very 
kind to her, and treated her like her own child. She told 
her about God, and heaven, and hell, and Jesus Christ, and 
how he had died to save her soul. She told her that she was 
a sinner, and that God hated all sin. Bella had never heard 
any thing of this before ; she had thought she was as good 
as any one. She had never known or heard any thing 
about religion. But, while her mistress told her these 
things, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit into her heart. It was 
not long before Bella began to be very sorry and sad. 
She felt that God was angry with her ; she felt that 
she had been very wicked; she condemned herself, and 
feared that God would punish her. For a long time 
she went mourning. Her mistress tried to comfort her. 
But she would not -be comforted. She took no food ; 
" neither rest day nor night until she felt that God had 
forgiven her." I might tell you of a great many others 
like this. Some of you, I hope, have felt in the same way. 
If you have, then you know something of Jonah's feelings ; 
you have felt that you deserve all that God has threatened 
against you ; you may not have felt so sad and sorry ; you 
may not have felt so long and deeply as Bella did. But if 
ever you have been truly under conviction, you have known 
something of the same feelings. You have condemned 
yourself. You have felt that you ought to be cast out of 
God's sight, even as Jonah was cast into the sea. 

3. Jonah saw that he had no power to save himself. He 
tells us that the sailors tried hard to bring the ship to the 
land. For all we know, Jonah may have taken part in the 
work. It is natural to think that he did. But God soon 
taught them all, that not by their power or might were 



82 SERMON VI. 

they to be saved. The mighty God rode on those winds, 
and held the reins, and drove those raging waves with his 
own hands. It was vain and foolish for Jonah and his 
companions to try to outride him, or to save themselves. 
In every trial they made, they failed. But they are not 
the only persons who have acted so foolishly. I think we 
can find some here, like Jonah, tugging at the oar. But 
stop and hear me, and I will tell you something that will 
save you a great deal of trouble and fruitless hard labour. 
When you are first convinced of sin, one of the most natu- 
ral things in the world for you to do is, to turn about to 
see whether you cannot find some way to save yourself. 
You will try, by your own strength, to break down sin in 
your own heart ; you will try to wean yourself from the 
world ; try to give up your wicked habits ; try to leave all 
evil companions ; try to force yourself to religious duties ; 
try to make yourself love God, and God's people. In a 
word, you will try, in every way you can, to make yourself 
religious. You will sometimes go to work as earnestly, in 
your own strength, to save yourself as you have done to 
cut down the forest, or to shock up the corn, or as Jonah 
and the sailors did to get the ship to the land. You will do 
your best to be your own Saviour. Some of you have done 
this already, and have been doing it for a long time. Now 
tell me, have you not found it hard work ? Has it brought 
you peace ? Has it made you love God with a full and 
warm heart ? Has it made you think of heaven with con- 
fidence and delight ? Has it made you say, in your heart, 
"Jesus is mine, and I am his?" Has it made you take 
pleasure in God's service ? Has it made you love to pray, 
and to hear the gospel, and to listen to the story of Christ's 
blood and death ? Oh ! no ; it has done nothing of this 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 83 

kind for you. It has left you as cold, and stupid, and un- 
happy as ever. It has done nothing more for you than all 
the labour of Jonah and the sailors did for them. It never 
will do any more for you. They struggled, and struggled 
against the waves, and at last gave it up. They were no 
nearer to land than they were at first. And let me tell 
you, that it will be just so with you. If ever you are saved 
from the heavy storm of God's wrath, which is gathering 
over you, you must give up trying to save yourself. You 
must cast yourself into the ocean of Christ's blood, and 
cry out, "Lord save, or I perish." You must learn that 
it is not your power that is to change your heart or make 
you holy. Eor this you must cast yourself into the arms 
of Jesus Christ as Jonah was cast into the whale's mouth, 
before you can ever be made holy and happy. I know that 
the sinner finds it hard to practice this. But this is God's 
way, and it is vain, and foolish, and wicked, to try to be 
saved in any other. The Bible tells us this over and over 
again. Yet there are thousands who will not listen to it. 
They will not believe it, until they learn it by long and 
bitter experience. They hear that it is Jesus alone who 
must save them ; they read about it, and talk about it ; but 
they will not really believe it, until they have first tried, 
in some way, by their own strength, to save themselves. 
Then, when they have done all they can, and failed, they 
will come and lie down at the feet of Jesus, and say, "Lord, 
if thou wilt thou canst make me clean." 

" There is a fountain, filled with blood, 
Drawn from Immanuel's veins, 
And sinners plunged beneath that flood, 
Lose all their guilty stains." 



84 SERMON VI. 

4. Jonah was in great darkness and trouble. The sailors 
took him up and cast him forth into the sea. Three 
days and three nights was he far down in the deep, dark 
waters, buried under the sea, and helpless as an infant 
slumbering in its mother's womb. Sometimes the sinner, 
under conviction, feels all this gloom, and sorrow, and help- 
lessness. The Psalmist, David, felt it. When under con- 
viction for sin, he said, " mine iniquities have taken hold 
upon me, so that I cannot look up. They are more than 
the hairs of my head, therefore, my heart faileth me." The 
sorrow-stricken publican felt it when he could not lift up 
his eyes to heaven ; but beat upon his breast, crying, " God 
be merciful to me a sinner." Job felt it when he said, "the 
arrows of the Almighty are within me. The poison of them 
drinketh up my spirits. The terrors of God set themselves 
in array against me." St. Paul felt it when he said, "Oh 
wretched man that I am ! who shall deliver me from the 
body of this death ?" And if these great and good men have 
felt this, it is not strange if we poor sinners should sometimes 
feel it. Yes, and some of us do feel it. I have known some 
persons to weep and mourn, in the deepest darkness and re- 
morse, under conviction. I have known them to load them- 
selves with the heaviest accusations ; to be in great trouble 
and fear of God's wrath. I have known them sometimes to 
fear that their sins were too great to be forgiven, and their 
hearts too black to be washed clean. There is no sorrow and 
darkness like this, I know nothing like it, except the sor- 
row and darkness of Jonah when he was borne away by 
the great fish down to the bottom of the sea. Have you 
ever known any thing of this feeling ? Oh ! remember 
Jonah, and do not give up in despair. Dark and helpless 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 85 

as you may feel, you are not worse off than he was in the 
deep. 

5. Jonah did not despair. In one sense, indeed, he did 
despair. He despaired of ever saving himself. But he 
trusted in God. He prayed and cried to God, even while 
in the fish. And just think of him there. No ray of the 
sun could s^ine upon him. He was buried in the deep. 
He was away from all earthly friends — denied all earthly 
comfort and advice. No one could think it possible that 
such was his situation. Oh, how dark must all have been 
around him ! The big waves rolled proudly and triumph- 
antly over him. He had no power to do any thing for 
himself. He could not see how it was possible for him to 
be saved. Oh, what untold trouble he must have felt ! Yet 
Jonah did not despair. He had some trust in the good- 
ness of God. He believed that God could still save him. 
He prayed. He cried to God, "Lord save, o v I perish." 
From beneath the heavy mountains of water he looked up 
to heaven. The sea roared. The fish moved onward with 
his prize. No human eye could see, no human ear could 
hear, no human arm could save Jonah now. The whaler 
might have harpooned that fish, but this could not have 
saved Jonah. But do not forget that the same God that 
rode on the storm a little while before, is now far down 
into the sea. He holds every drop of its water in his own 
hand. He is in the fish with Jonah. Jonah is in g^eat 
trouble ; but God holds him now in his own arms. He 
nurses him even as a mother nurses her sick and only child. 
He cradles him with his own hand in the deep. And then 
he drives on the great fish by his own word, and to do his 
own will. What a good and mighty God is this ! And 
who is He ? Is he some strange, unknown God ? Is ho 

8 



86 



SERMON VI. 



the God of none but Jonah ? Oh ! no, my dear friends , 
he is your God too. He has no cause to go down into the 
sea with you. But he will go with you through troubles 
just as great. He will sorrow with you in all your sor- 
rows. He has himself died for you, and gone down into 
the cold grave to show you that he is even ready to be with 
you there. He has risen again from it, to show you that 
he can bring you up again from its depths unhurt. Oh ! 
what a precious and all-sufficient Saviour is this ! He will 
take care of you. He will see that not a hair of your head 
shall perish. He will guide you through the deep, dark 
waves of sin. He will bring you at last safe into the land 
of glory. If he has sent his Holy Spirit to show you your 
own sin and danger ; to make you feel your own weakness 
and helplessness ; to bring you into darkness and trouble, 
and make you fear that all is lost to you, it is all done in 
order that that Spirit may bring you back to Christ, to be 
saved only by and through him. This, this, is the con- 
vinced, broken-hearted sinner's only helper and redeemer. 
Oh ! what boundless love and mercy are here ! We can 
measure the depth of the ocean. We can tell how far it is 
round and through the world. We can tell how many miles 
it is to the sun, and how much the different stars weigh. 
But no language can tell you the height, and depth, and 
length, and breadth, of the love of God. We only kno^ 
that it made him give up the only Son of his bosom to save 
you when cast out into the deep waters of sorrow and 
trouble for sin. I cannot describe that love. It is above, 
and beneath, and all round us. Just look at yourself as a 
sinner, and at Jesus as your Saviour. Think of yourself 
cast out as Jonah was, and as you fall you are clasped in 
the firm grasp of his own secure and faithful arms. And 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 87 

hear this Saviour crying out amidst the storm "this is 
mine, I bought him with my blood ; neither sin, nor the 
grave, nor death, nor hell, shall ever pluck him out of m^ 
hand." This is the broken-hearted sinner's Redeemer. 
In his hands you are safe. He may carry you on, as 
Jonah was carried, through still deeper and darker waters, 
The mountains of the sea may seem to ride over you. The 
sun of hope may be long shut out from your soul. But this 
loving and all-powerful Saviour is still with you in the deep. 
He folds his gracious arms round you. He whispers in 
your ear, " Fear not, I am with thee, I will never leave 
thee nor forsake thee. ,, 

" When through the deep waters I call thee to go, 
The rivers of wo shall not thee overflow, 
For I will be with thee thy troubles to bless, 
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress." 

An Indian, whose heart had been changed by the grace 
of God, was asked by a white man to tell him how it was 
done ? The Indian said, " I cannot tell you, but if you will 
go with me into the woods, I will show you how it was 
done." They went. After going some distance, the In- 
dian stopped, and raked a number of leaves together, and 
made a circle of them. He then put a worm in the middle, 
and set them on fire. When the worm felt the heat, it ran 
to one side, but found itself met by fire. Then it ran to 
the other, and there was fire there. After two or three 
trials of this kind, and finding fire all round, and that 
it could not escape, the worm came back to the centre, 
and gave up in despair to die. At that moment, the In- 
dian caught up the worm in his hand, and saved it. 
" There," said he, " that is the way that God did to me. I 



88 SERMON VI. 

found myself a sinner. I felt myself in danger of fire. 
I tried to save myself from wrath. But wherever I went, 
and whatever I did, I found fire. I ran from one side 
to the other, but there was fire. At last I gave up in 
despair to die. I saw how helpless I was. I looked up 
and said, Lord Jesus, save a poor sinner. Then Jesua 
Christ take my soul right up." 

CM. 

Mercy alone can meet my case ; 

For mercy, Lord, I cry : 
Jesus, Redeemer, show thy face 

In mercy, or I die. 

Save me — for none besides can save ; 

At thy command I tread, 
"With trembling step, life's stormy wave ;— 

The wave goes o'er my head. 

I perish, and my doom were just ; 

But wilt thou leave me ? No : 
I hold thee fast, my hope, my trust ; 

I will not let thee go. 

Still sure to me thy promise stands, 

And ever must abide ; 
Behold it written on thy hands, 

And graven in thy side. 

To this, this only, will I cleave ; 

Thy word is all my plea ; 
That word is truth, and I believe ; — 

Have mercy, Lord, on me. 

- Questions. — 1. What did Jonah do when he was waked up from 
his sleep on the sea? 2. Did he tell the people at once who he 
was? 3. Were the sailors Christians or heathen? 4. What were 
they doing when Jonah went to them ? 5. Who did the lot fall on ? 






THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 89 

6. What did Jonah tell them to do with him ? 7. What happened 
to him as he went into the water ? 8. How did Jonah feel when 
he wag first waked up? 9. How ought a sinner to feel when under 
conviction? 10. What did Jonah think ought to be done with him? 
Did he try to excuse himself for sin? 11. What does the sinner 
under conviction think ought to be done with him ? 12. Did Jonah 
think he could save himself? 13. Does the sinner under conviction 
feel that he can save himself? 14. Did Jonah enjoy any light and 
happiness in this state ? 15. Does the sinner under conviction feel 
any thing of this gloom and sorrow ? 16. Did Jonah despair of being 
saved? 17. Does the sinner under conviction despair? 18. Who 
only can save the sinner when under the sorrows of conviction for sin ? 



SERMON VII. 

THE SIN AND THE PUNISHMENT OF LOT'S 
WIFE; OR, THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION, 
STILL IN DANGER. 

BY THE KEV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar 
of salt. — Gen. xix. 26. 

All the wonderful things written in the Bible are writ- 
ten for our good. We should, therefore, always be glad 
to hear them. And when we hear, to listen with attentive 
ears, and to receive with thankful and believing hearts. For 
it is God who speaks to us in the Bible ; and he is just and 
holy. He cannot lie. He tells us, that many years ago 
there was a woman who liv**** in the city of Sodom, who 
had all the wealth and pleasure her heart could wish. 
Sodom was one great city of sin. Like Nineveh, it neither 
worshipped nor feared the God of heaven. Wickedness of 
all sorts walked abroad, in open daylight, like an armed 
giant, in its streets. This was more than the patience of 
God could bear always. His anger was kindled against the 
city, and he determined to put an end to its pride and 
wickedness by opening upon it a tempest of fire and brim- 
stone out of heaven. But in that city there was one, and 
only one good man. His name was Lot, and he was the 
(90) 






THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 91 

husband of the woman of whose sin and punishment I am 
about to tell you. God loves his people, and for their sakes, 
in some degree, all his people's wives, and husbands, and 
children, and friends. He loves all who love him. And 
when God overthrew Sodom he would not destroy Lot in it. 
For the sake of this one good man he sent two angels, 
to warn him of the danger, and to command him to escape 
from the city. These angels came to Lot at evening about 
the sunset. They tarried with him all that night. They 
told Lot that God was about to destroy the city. They 
advised him to warn his daughters-in-law and sons-in-law 
to haste away as soon as possible. And Lot went imme- 
diately and did as they said. But they thought he was 
jesting and mocking at them. They heard his warning as 
if it were an idle story. At the early dawn the next day 
the angels waked up Lot ; and told him to arise and take 
his wife and two daughters who were there, and not to wait 
for any one, lest he might be overtaken and destroyed in 
the ruin of the city. But Lot's wife had been born and 
raised in Sodom. She had, therefore, many things to bind 
her to it. There were some things she thought must be 
done before she could quit it — she must bid her friends 
adieu — she must carry many little things she loved with 
her, — and, indeed, she could not get her own full consent 
to leave the city. For these, or for some other reasons, 
Lot "lingered" He was slow in getting off. But the 
angels hasted him away. They laid hold on his hand, and 
the hand of his wife, and of his two daughters, and led 
them out of the city. Then the angels pointed them to the 
mountain, and said, "escape for thy life;" "look not be- 
hind thee — stay not in all the plain — escape to the moun- 
tain, lest thou be consumed." 



92 SERMON VII. 

The sun was now rising, with his bright rays, from be- 
hind the distant hills, and darting them across the broad 
plains of Sodom. The country around Sodom was rich in 
all manner of grain ; the valleys were carpeted with velvet 
green-; thousands of cattle were strolling and grazing on 
its gentle slopes; the song of the herdsman was wafted 
in mellow tones on 'the air, and the houses, and palaces, 
and towers of the wicked city, threw back, in diamond 
brightness, the rays of the rising sun. To fly away from 
such a scene as this was a hard trial to Lot and his wife. 
To be denied the liberty of ever looking back upon it, was 
more than Lot's wife could bear. Sodom had been the 
place of all her wicked pleasures. There were all her 
worldly friends. There was her wealth. And there was her 
heart. She loved Sodom. She could hardly believe that 
God would really destroy it. "Oh!" thought she, "how 
can I give up for ever this city of my heart !" With these 
feelings, she determined, in spite of the warning of the 
angels, to " look back" — to take a last and sorrowful view 
of it. Foolish and daring woman ! to attempt in that way 
to trifle with God. That was her last look. Remember, 
she did not turn, she merely looked back upon Sodom. In 
a moment "she became a pillar of salt," — hard as flint. 
As a pillar of salt she stood there for many ages, a warn- 
ing to men of the just judgments of God against sin. Jo- 
sephus, a historian of the Jews, tells us that it was there 
in his day, and that he saw it. Our Lord and Saviour, 
while warning the people of his day of the coming judg- 
ment, reminded them of the sudden destruction of Sodom, 
and told them to "remember Lot's wife." 

There is a lesson in this history for us all. But I shall 
use it especially as a warning to every sinner who is under 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 93 

conviction for sin. Lot's wife may be considered as an 
awakened sinner. Sodom may be considered as the sins 
in which she was living; her attempt to escape may be 
considered as the good resolutions of her first conviction ; 
the angels leading her may be considered as the Holy 
Spirit encouraging and helping her to fly from sin ; and 
her looking back may be considered as want of firmness in 
her resolutions, and her wish to go back, even after she had 
partly given up sin. Although she had been led out of the 
city, and pointed to the mountain, and entreated to escape, 
and was then on her way to the city of Zoar, yet she did 
not escape. She was no more saved than if she had re- 
mained in the city. Let us look at her experience, and see 
the reason of her ruin. 

Here let me tell you that conviction for sin, and conver- 
sion to God, are two very different things. A sinner under 
conviction is a sinner waked up to his guilt and danger. A 
sinner converted is a sinner who has hasted away to Christ 
for pardon and mercy, who is made safe in the strong 
mountain of God's love and grace. 

1. Lot's wife saw her danger, and set out to escape 
from.it. 

So the Holy Spirit of God makes many a man see his 
danger as a sinner, and strives with him, and urges him to 
flee away from his sins. Many a man, under the warnings 
of the spirit, sets off in a way to the mount of God, and 
yet, like Lot's wife, perishes in the way. There are 
many cases of this kind to be found in the Bible. There 
was a great king whose name was Pharaoh. Because 
of his unkindness and cruelty to the people of God, he 
and all his kingdom were punished with dreadful plagues 
from heaven. When Pharaoh saw this, he sent, again and 



94 SERMON VII. 

again, for Moses and Aaron, and said to them with great 
feeling and repentance, " I have sinned against the Lord, 
and against you; entreat the Lord for me; for he is 
righteous, and I and my people are wicked." But as soon 
as the plague ceased Pharaoh lost all his feelings of sorrow* 
and sinned yet more and more, and hardened his heart. 
After Judas betrayed the Saviour, he felt the deepest sor- 
row and remorse. Yet he was not saved by his convictions, 
for he went out and hanged himself. When king Herod 
heard John the Baptist preach, he listened to him "gladly" 
or with interest. He was even so far convinced as to do 
many things. Yet he could not give up his sins. He so 
hardened himself in them as cruelly to cast the Baptist 
into prison, and, at last, to send and have his head taken 
off. Our Saviour tells us of a rich young man who came 
to him, under conviction, and asked "what good thing" he 
should "do to inherit eternal life ?" He had even gone 
so far in religion, as to be able to say that he had kept the 
commandments from his youth up ; yet he could not wean 
his heart from his money. He loved it just as Lot's wife 
loved the things she had in Sodom. He turned away from 
the Saviour and went back into the world. A Roman 
governor, named Felix, once heard St. Paul preach, and by 
the power of his reasoning, and the working of the Holy 
Spirit, was brought under conviction. He trembled in the 
presence of the apostle, then a prisoner in chains before 
him. Yet he would not give up his sins. He said to the 
apostle, " Go thy way for this time, when I have a conve- 
nient season I will call for thee." Another king, whose 
name was Agrippa, heard the same apostle, and said, 
"Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian." Yet he 
turned back, and was hardened in sin. 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 95 

I called to see a faithful servant once, who was lying and 
trembling on the verge of death. He was greatly alarmed 
at the thought of dying unprepared to meet God. He said 
that the thought of his sins gave him the deepest distress, 
and that all he wanted was to be a Christian. Before I left 
him he solemnly promised that if ever he was raised up 
from that bed of sickness, he would be a Christian the rest 
of his days. He said he would go in and attend the family 
prayers every morning or night ; that he would listen, and 
learn all he could from the Bible ; that he would be glad 
to go to church every Sunday ; that he would, with God's 
help, live as a Christian ought to live. Had he died then > 
his master and all of us who were there, would have said 
that he died a Christian, and was saved in heaven. But 
he recovered; and, as he had always been a good and 
faithful servant, we expected to see the light of a good 
Christian shining in his life. And he did not altogether 
forget his promises. I went often to the house of his mas- 
ter, and would sometimes talk with him as he would light 
me to my room at night. As often as the books were 
brought out, and the bell rang for prayers, James would be 
there to join with us in family worship. This practice he 
kept up for several months. His master told me that 
during all that time he had been faithful to his promises. 
He seemed to be a Christian indeed, and all of us thought 
he would soon join the church. But at last he gradually 
gave up coming in to prayer. As I had not seen him for 
a good while, I asked one of the other servants what had 
i become of James. He told me that, but a few days before, 
he was talking to him about his promises, and that James 
had said he did not see the use of so much religion — so 
much praying — and so much reading the Bible — and so 



96 SERMON VII. 

much going to church — and so much hearing sermons read. 
He told me, too, that he had given up going to church ; or, 
when he did go, he would sit out on the logs all the time 
of service, and talk with wieked servants about worldly 
things, just as if he had never promised to go to church, 
or heard that there was a God to be worshipped on Sun- 
day. In fact, James had given up all pretensions to reli- 
gion. He was just the same wicked man he was before he 
was sick. Now, this man was like Lot's wife. He set out 
in the way to heaven, but he " looked bach." He turned 
bach. He did not, indeed, become a pillar of salt ; but he 
became (what is just as bad) hardened in sin. Two years 
passed away, and James was taken dangerously ill again. 
As soon as I heard of it I went to see him. I read the 
Bible to him; I prayed for him; I talked to him. I did 
not distress him by reminding him of his old promises. I 
told him of Jesus, the Saviour of sinners. I begged him 
to remember that he was able and willing to forgive all 
sins. I read and explained the parable of the prodigal son. 
I entreated him to give up his heart to that Saviour, and 
put all his trust in him. But his heart seemed to be turned 
to stone. " No, no," said he, "I have most wickedly broken 
my promises to God ; I have sinned away my day of grace ; 
he will not now have mercy on me ; I have no hope ; I do 
not, and cannot feel as I did before ; my mind is so dark, 
and my heart is so hard !" I shall never forget that scene. 
His fellow-servants stood round the room in silent and 
solemn fear. They heard his short, heavy breathing, and 
watched his ghastly countenance until he gave up in the 
death struggle, saying, with his last breath, "There is no 
mercy for me." He had once been keenly sensible of his 
guilt as a sinner ; he had mourned and wept as a sinner ; 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 97 

he had promised before God to give up his sins. Like Lot's 
wife, he had set off in the way to heaven. He had put his 
hand to the plough, but looked back. He was hardened in 
sin, and perished in impenitence. Then let every sinner 
under conviction take warning, and not rest in his fears or 
sorrows. 

II. Now let me warn you against this falling away — this 
backsliding from conviction. "Remember Lot's wife." 

1. Do not linger in sin, as they did in Sodom. If you 
are anxious about religion, why should you remain any 
longer in sin ? Why not rise up now, and with firm reso- 
lution escape from it ? If you would not stand still, and 
perish in your convictions, you must earnestly resist every 
habit of indulgence in sin. If you will not do this, you 
can never reach the mountain of salvation. If you make 
it your practice, willingly to commit any one sin, it will 
soon wipe off all your religious impressions, and stifle all 
your convictions. You may feel that you would like to be 
a Christian; you may hear the Bible read, and love to 
hear sermons ; and you may wonder that you do not get 
religion. But look into your own heart. See whether 
there is not some darling sin there which you do not wish 
to give up. It may be pride. It may be an unbridled 
temper. It may be hatred of some one. It may be some 
sinful pleasure or practice. It may be an unruly tongue. 
It may be slandering, or backbiting, or wicked talking, or 
telling falsehoods. But, whatever it may be, if you linger 
in any sin, in wish, or thought, or word, or act, you are like 
Lot's wife lingering in Sodom. One of the greatest and 
best men that ever lived, said that, when he was under con- 
viction, he used to pray to God to convert him ; but then 
he would add, "Lord, not yet." He wanted to "linger" 

9 



98 SERMON VII. 

a little longer in sin. He would not determine to turn at 
once from his evil ways. All of us are ready to say, " this 
was very silly ;" yet all do the same thing. We kneel down 
and pray, " Oh ! Lord, heal my soul;" but say at the same 
time, in our heart, "Lord, not yet." You wish to be 
saved ; but there is still some lingering love of sin. You 
decide to be Christians, but not just now. These are 
somewhat like the feelings that Lot's wife had as she was 
leaving Sodom. But follow her on, and see what became 
of her. 

2. When once you have set out in religion, do not look 
back. Our Saviour himself has said, " No man, having put 
his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the king- 
dom of God." You know that when the ploughman is 
breaking up the ground, he can do almost any thing better 
than look back. If he would do his work well, he must 
hold the handles of his plough with a firm grasp and a 
steady hand. He must watch the furrow before him, 
and see that the leader of the horses walks in his proper 
place. If he looks back, he must slacken his hold on 
the handles, and then his plough will be apt to run out 
of the ground ; his work will be but half done ; the 
ground will not be well prepared for the seed, and there 
must be a failure in the crop. A good ploughman keeps 
his eyes before him, and moves steadily onward. Any 
other is not fit to be at the plough. So it is in religion. 
When you have once been convinced of sin, you must go 
on in the good work. The heart must be carefully broken 
up. The weeds and briers of sin must be rooted out and 
killed. The soil of the heart must be made mellow, as the 
hard and parched ground must be, before it can be ready 
for the seed. And then you must not stop and look back. 



THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 99- 

You must still look ahead. The seed must be so^ n. And 
you must look and pray for the rains and dews of God's 
grace upon it. Nor must you feel that your work is done 
until the whole crop is gathered into the barn. Your work 
of religion is to go on from the time you are first convinced 
of sin until you are ripe, and fit to be gathered, with all the 
rich fruits of God's grace, into heaven. Take a warning 
from Lot's wife. She began to fly from sin. But when 
she had gone a little way, she "looked back." Now this 
is just the way that some sinners under conviction do. 
They think the world is full of pleasure. They think that 
religion is cold and gloomy. They say, in their hearts, 
" one more look at the world ; one more taste of its plea- 
sure ; one more indulgence in sin ; and then I will escape 
to the mountain." But do you not know that the man who 
can look at sin with pleasure is always in danger ? Do you 
not know that the very feeling that will let you look at it 
with pleasure will tempt you to go back to it again ? The 
man who can resolve to sin once more, is very apt to go on 
resolving to sin once more, until he is hardened in his sins. 
It was but a look that turned Lot's wife into a pillar of salt, 
A look, or a single sin, is all that is necessary sometimes to 
draw you away from God, and harden you in sin. 

But let me ask you now, have any of you truly felt that 
you are sinners against God ? that God is angry with you ? 
that he will one day punish you for your sins ? Have you 
ever earnestly tried to give up your sins ? to fly away from 
them ? Are you now trying to do this ? If you are, you 
are doing right. You must go on doing all you can. You 
must fight against the world, the flesh, and the devil, or 
you can never conquer them. You must " resist the devil," 
or he will never flee from you. But there is something else 



100 SERMON vn. 

you must do. And I want you to think of this as if God 
was asking you the question. Do you often and earnestly 
pray ? If you do not pray, you cannot go forward in re- 
ligion ; you cannot keep up your conviction of sin. If you 
are a convinced sinner, God has convinced you by his Spirit. 
If you do not pray to God to deepen your convictions, by 
the power of that Holy Spirit, all your religious feelings 
and desires will soon be wiped away. You may as well 
expect the corn you have planted to grow without rain, or 
the wheat to ripen without sun, as to expect to become good 
and happy Christians without prayer. Prayer must be th« 
beginning, and the progress, and the end of your Christian 
race. You can pray, and you must pray. You can always 
find time for this. If you can do no more, you can look 
up, with your heart, to God, and say, " Lord help me," 
" God be merciful to me a sinner." You can pray at night, 
on your bed, or in the day, at work. To pray well, you 
must not cry out in loud and big words. " Prayer is the 
burden of a sigh" — "the upward glancing of an eye." It 
is the heaving of a burdened heart. It is the lifting up of 
the soul to God with feelings which cannot, sometimes, be 
expressed with words. Remember, then, that God knows 
your heart, and can hear your prayer, even before you 
make it. Go to him in prayer, and beg him to make you 
a new heart, to lead you on in the way to heaven, to make 
you hate all sin, and to give you a good hope of salvation 
through the blood of Jesus, your crucified Redeemer. 

8s & 7s. 

Jesus ! full of all compassion, 
Hear thy humble suppliant's cry; 

Let me know thy great salvation ; 
See ! I languish, faint, and die. 






THE SINNER UNDER CONVICTION. 101 

Guilty, but with heart relenting, 
Overwhelmed with helpless grief ; 

Prostrate at thy feet repenting, 
Send, send me quick relief. 

Whither should a wretch be flying, 

But to him who comfort gives, 
Whither, from the dread of dying, 

But to him who ever lives. 

Hear, then, blessed Saviour, hear me ! 

Kaise my spirit from the dust ; 
Send the comforter to cheer me ; 

Lo ! in thee I put my trust. 

Questions. — 1. What great city did God destroy with fire and 
brimstone out of heaven ? 2. What good man lived in that city ? 
3. Did God destroy that good man? 4. How did he save him? 5. 
What became of Lot's wife ? 6. What was she turned to a pillar 
of salt for ? 7. Do you know any persons who are like Lot's wife ? 
8. Is the sinner perfectly safe when he is convinced of sin? 9. What 
ought the sinner under conviction to do ? 10. Ought he to linger in 
sin ? 11. Ought he to look back ? 12. To whom should he go in his 
conviction ? 



SERMON YIII. * 

LOT FLYING FROM SODOM; OR, WHAT 
REPENTANCE IS. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 
Escape for thy life. — Gen. xix. 17. 

Without repentance no man can be saved. Our Lord 
Himself hath said, " Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise 
perish." When he sent out his apostles to preach the gos- 
pel, they went forward in his name, and " preached that 
men should repent." Wherever they went, they told the 
people that God had raised up Jesus from the dead, and 
exalted him at his right hand, " to give repentance to Israel, 
and forgiveness of sins." And St. Peter says, that " God 
is not willing that any should perish, hut that all should 
come to repentance." Almost every part of the Bible tells 
us something about the importance or the nature of repent- 
ance. Ministers of the gospel preach of it, and Christians 
talk about it ; but there are very few persons who under- 
stand what it is. I once overheard a conversation between 
two servants — one was a professing Christian, the other 
was a sinner, inquiring the way to heaven. Said the in- 
quiring sinner, "What shall I do to be saved?" The 
answer was, "You must repent of your sins." "Oh, yes," 
(102) 






WHAT REPENTANCE IS. 108 

said the inquirer, " I know this ; the minister told me so, 
and so have all my friends whom I have talked with. But 
I do not know whether I repent or not. I wish you would 
tell me what it is to repent." Here the Christian seemed 
somewhat puzzled. But at last he said to him, " Why, you 
must go and fast and pray ; you must be sorry for youi 
sins, and then go and be baptized and join the church." 
They talked a long time on the subject, and I felt, every 
moment, as if I must step forward and give them all the 
instruction I could. Presently they both rose from their 
seats. As they were about to move off, the" inquiring sin- 
ner said, " Well, the minister is to preach a funeral sermon 
to us this evening, may be he will tell me something about 
the way to heaven." It was a clear, still day in Septem- 
ber. The large oak trees spread their long branches over 
the yard, and cast a soft and beautiful shade all round us. 
Benches, chairs, and planks, were placed in every direc- 
tion under this shade, and at three o'clock a large congre- 
gation assembled, from the different plantations around, to 
hear the funeral sermon of their fellow-servant. As I 
walked out on the portico, which was my pulpit for the 
day, a tall and intelligent looking servant rose from his 
seat, and with a full, clear voice, gave out the hymn, 

" Vain man, thy fond pursuits forbear, 
Repent, thy end is nigh ; 
Death, at the farthest, can't be far , . 
Oh, think before thou die." 

When they had sung this hymn, and I had prayed, I took 
as my text, "Escape for thy life." As I looked over that 
large congregation, I saw the same Christian and the same 
inquiring sinner, whom I had heard talking in the morn- 



104 SERMON VIII. 

ing. I thought of the answers that had been given to the 
inquirer's questions I remembered that he had expressed 
the hope that I might say something about the meaning 
and nature of repentance. I do not remember now all I 
said in that sermon. But it gave me great pleasure to 
know that God blessed it to the instruction, the comfort, 
and the salvation of that inquiring sinner. He soon after- 
wards came to talk with me on the subject of his salvation- 
He told me of the conversation which I had overheard, and 
said he had fasted, he had prayed, he had talked with 
friends, he had suffered great distress of mind, but that he 
had never known what repentance was, had never broken 
off from sin, until after he had heard that sermon. May 
God grant us the blessing of his Holy Spirit, and teach us 
all, before we separate, the nature of that true repentance 
which need not be repented of, and which is unto salvation. 
To repent of sin is something more than to fast and to 
pray — something more than to be baptized, and to join the 
church — something more than to sorrow and to mourn over 
your sins — something more than to shed tears and to feel 
fear. You may do all this, and yet not repent. St. Paul 
says, there is "a godly sorrow that worketh repentance." 
Repentance, then, is something more than sorrow. This 
sorrow must work something in you. That work must be 
something in your hearts and in your lives. There is as 
much difference between mere sorrow for sin, and true re- 
pentance, as there is between a tree and the fruit it bears. 
Sorrow for sin is the tree, repentance is the fruit. As the 
peach, or the fig, or the orange tree, would be of no use, if 
they did not bear their fruit, so sorrow, or fear, or tears for 
sin, would be of no use, if they did not bring forth the fruit 
of repentance. You must not flatter yourself, that because 



WHAT REPENTANCE IS. 105 

you are sorry for your sins, and abuse them, and condemn 
them, you have done the whole work of repentance. 

But I hear an inquiring sinner ask, " What then is it to 
repent of sin ?" Listen to me, and I will try and tell you. 
A great many years ago there lived, in the city of Sodom, 
a good man, whose name was Lot. That was a wicked city, 
and God was about to destroy it, with fire and brimstone, 
out of heaven. But he would not destroy Lot. So he 
sent his angels, to warn him to escape for his life from it. 
When they came to Lot, they did not say to him, u Sit 
down, and be quiet, and weep and mourn over the sins of 
Sodom." Had Lot done nothing more than this, he would 
have perished in Sodom, just like all the sinners there. 
But the angels took him by the hand and led him out of the 
city. They then said to him, in the most earnest and 
solemn manner, " Escape for thy life— escape to the moun- 
tains — tarry not in all the plain, lest thou be consumed." 
Now, if you truly repent of your sins, you will fly from 
them, just as Lot did from Sodom. However dear they 
may be, you will leave them all behind. You will take no 
pleasure in them. You will not tarry in their neighbour- 
hood. If you see that you are in any great danger, you 
will fly from it. If you are suffering any painful illness, 
you do all you can to be cured of it. And the greater your 
danger, the keener your pain, the more anxious you are to 
be rid of them. It is just so with true repentance. If your 
sorrow for sins be a godly sorrow, you cannot willingly re- 
main in those sins; you cannot take pleasure in them. 
They will be painful to your soul. You will do all you can 
to put them far away from you. You may search the Bible 
through, and everywhere you will find that this is what is 
meant by repentance. If you think that you truly repent, 



106 SERMON VIII. 

while you go on to sin against God, or against man, you 
are most sadly deceiving yourselves. Such a repentance 
will be unto damnation, not unto salvation. If you fly not 
from sin, you will be destroyed along with it, just as Lot 
would have been destroyed with Sodom, if he had not 
escaped from it. You have heard a great deal about the 
good old prophet Isaiah. He was a man of the highest 
order of piety. His mind and heart were full of the know- 
ledge and the love of God. He had repented truly of sin, 
and he knew all about its nature and importance. Hear 
what he says about it. "Wash you, make you clean, 
put away the evil of your doings ; cease to do evil, learn to 
do well." You know something, too, about that good and 
self-denying man who lived upon locusts and wild honey, 
and wore a leathern girdle about his loins. I mean John 
the Baptist. That man who baptized our Saviour ; who 
went down with him into the water, and came up out of the 
water. He was the great preacher of repentance. Do you 
remember what he says about it ? "When the people came 
to him to be baptized, he told them that something more 
was necessary for them than merely to confess their sins. 
He said to them, bring forth fruits, or works, meet for re- 
pentance ; prove by your lives that you hate and forsake 
sin. "Every tree," said he, "that does not bring forth 
good fruit, shall be cut down and burned in the fire." 
Every man, whatever may be his hopes, or appearances, or 
pretensions, whose repentance does not work in him the 
fruits of righteousness, shall be cast into hell fire. 

I once walked into a garden, with a lady, to gather some 
flowers. There was one large bush whose branches were 
bending under the weight of the most beautiful roses. We 
both gazed upon it with admiration. There was one 



WHAT REPENTANCE IS. 107 

flower on it which seemed to shine above all the rest in 
beauty. This lady pressed forward into the thick bush, and 
reached far over to pluck it. As she did this, a black 
snake, which was hid in the bush, wrapped itself round her 
arm. She was alarmed beyond all description ; and ran 
from the garden, screaming and almost in convulsions. 
During all that day she suffered very much with fear ; her 
whole body trembled, and it was a long time before she 
could be quieted. That lady is still alive. Such is her 
hatred now of the whole serpent race, that she has never 
since been able to look at a snake, even though it were 
dead. No one could ever persuade her to venture again 
into a cluster of bushes, even to pluck a beautiful rose 
Now this is the way the sinner acts who truly repents of 
his sins. He thinks of sin as the serpent that once coiled 
itself round him. He hates it. He dreads it. He flies 
from it. He fears the places where it inhabits. He does 
not willingly go into its haunts. He will no more play 
with sin than this lady would afterwards have fondled 
snakes. 

But it is so important that you should rightly understand 
the nature of repentance, that I must tell you of one more 
fact which seems to me ,to illustrate it. It is a part of the 
history of a good and faithful old servant, who told it to 
me himself. I will repeat it to you in the shortest and 
simplest way I can. Said he, " When I was about sixteen 
years old, I had one of the kindest and best masters that 
ever lived. I was his dining room servant, and attended to 
all his personal wants. One day, in the hot month of 
August, my master returned from a ride on the farm, very 
sick. He called me to help him from his horse, and told 
me I must put him to bed, and go for the physician. In a 



108 SERMON YIII. 

few days, my master grew worse, and the family began to 
be very uneasy about him. I loved my master, and staid 
constantly in his room. One morning he turned to me, 
and said, i George, I am very sick, I wish you would take 
that note, on the table, and go off to the apothecary's, in 
the village, and bring the medicines the physician has 
written for.' As I was about going, there were other 
commissions given me ; some from my ^mistress- ; some from 
the young ladies, and some from the servants. In at- 
tending to all these, I by some means or other lost the 
note for the medicine. I was greatly troubled about it, 
and looked for it a long time. But I was obliged to 
come back without the medicine. As I was on the way 
home, I said to myself, ' What shall I tell my master ? 
What excuse shall I give ? To tell him that I have lost 
the note will make him think that I am very careless.' So 
I determined to say to him that there was no medicine of 
that kind to be had in the village. When I reached home," 
said George, "I went into my master's chamber. He 
turned his eyes towards me, and said, in a kind tone, ' Well, 
George, I am glad you have come ; I hope you have brought 
the medicine.' 'No, sir,' said I, 'the medicine is not to 
be had in the village. The apothecary said he had none 
of that kind.' ' I am very sorry for it,' said my master, ' the 
want of that medicine may be the means of laying me in 
my grave.' That night my master's fever increased. The 
next morning the physician was sent for again. He gave 
other medicines. But they did not answer the purpose. 
It was too late. My master was certainly getting worse. 
I stood by his bedside," said George, "and watched his 
pale face, and the big drops of sweat that stood on his 
brow, and heard his short breathiDg, as he was sinking 



WHAT REPENTANCE IS. 109 

rapidly into the arms of death. Then I began to see and 
feel the wickedness of the falsehood I had told him. I 
shall never forget one scene in my master's dying hour. 
Once he turned his eyes on me, and said, ' George, be a 
good boy. Be faithful and affectionate to your mistress, 
and when I am buried in the earth do not forget me.' My 
heart felt then as if it would burst with grief. I said to 
myself, I am the cause of my master's death. Had I told 
the truth, and taken back another note for the medicine, 
my master might have lived. I thought of his kindness to 
me, and of my sin and ingratitude to him. I felt that, if 
the world were mine, I would give it to take back what I 
had done. I wanted to fall then on my knees and confess 
my crime unto him, and beg his forgiveness. But it was 
too late. He was dead. As I saw his eyes closed, my 
conscience said, your master died for the want of that medi- 
cine. Many years have passed away since that day," said 
George, " and I am now an old man. But I have never 
forgotten that day. I never can forget it. I have mourned 
over it, and will go on to mourn over it. I have ever since 
hated a lie, and have never wilfully told one. I have tried, 
in every way, to shun even the appearance of that sin. 
When I die I hope I shall meet my master in heaven, that 
I may there ask his forgiveness for the injury I have done 
him." Now this seems to me to be a picture of true re- 
pentance. This old man was deeply distressed because he 
had sinned against a good master. His distress did not 
arise from the mere fear of punishment, for no one knew 
that he had told the lie, no one wished to punish him for 
it. He was grieved because his sin had, probably, been 
the cause of his master's death. This is just what every 
sinner feels when he truly repents of his sins. 

10 



110 SERMON VIII. 

In evil long I took delight, 

Unawed by shame or fear, 
Till a new object struck my sight, 

And stopped my wild career 

I saw one hanging on the tree, 

In agony and blood, 
Who fixed his languid eyes on me, 

As near his cross I stood. 

Sure, never till my latest breath, . 

Can I forget that look ; 
It seemed to charge me with his death, 

Though not a word he spoke. 

My conscience felt and owned the guilt, 

And plunged me in despair ; 
I saw my sins his blood had spilt, 

And helped to nail him there. 

Yes, you have sinned against the greatest love and mercy 
ever shown towards any beings. Our master in heaven 
has been kinder to you than any father could be to his 
children. He has nourished and brought up each one of 
you as if you were his own child. He gave you your very 
being. He watched over all your infant days. He kept 
you safe ten thousand times, when no other power could 
have helped you. He has often snatched you from ruin. 
When sickness laid you down on the bed of fever, he raised 
you up. Whatever you have of peace of mind, or comfort 
of body, you have received through his goodness, Eut you 
are ungrateful children. You go on to sin against him ; 
you trample on his laws ; you hate his service ; you break 
his Sabbaths ; you violate all his commands, and treat him 
just as if he had no authority over you. Yet he loves you 
as a father. He wants you to come back and be reconciled 






WHAT REPENTANCE IS. Ill 

to him. He has sent his own Son, Jesus Christ, to look 
for you, and his Holy Spirit to strive with and to persuade 
you to come back. It was for you that the Lord Jesus 
Christ was nailed to the cross. It was your sins that nailed 
him there. For you he groaned, and bled, and died. To 
you he now offers full, and free, and everlasting pardon. 
The gates of heaven are open to receive you. God's Holy 
Spirit, and his ministers, are taking you by the hand to 
show you the way to escape from sin and from hell. Their 
entreaty to you is, "Escape for thy life." Break loose 
from all your love of sin, from the chains it has thrown 
round you. Cast off its wretched slavery, and fly to Jesus 
Christ for freedom and salvation. 

My dear friends, if you will not do this, your end must 
be everlasting destruction. The sinner who will not repent, 
or fly from sin, who will remain unconverted, must die for 
ever. As certain as God is on his throne, you must fall 
under his wrath. If this is true of one sinner, it is true 
of all. It is true of every sinner who now hears me. 
" Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." Upon 
this point the Bible is as clear and decided as the sunshine. 
If you neglect to repent, you reject salvation. The salva- 
tion of Jesus Christ is a salvation from sin. If you do not, 
by repentance, forsake sin, you can never be fit for heaven. 
It is a heaven of holiness and purity. The company of the 
saints there is the company of the blessed. The happiness 
they enjoy there is a pure happiness. No man can be fit 
for these who does not cleanse himself from sin here. And 
no man can ever cast off sin here but by flying from it, as 
Lot did from Sodom. "Escape," then, I beseech you, "for 
your life," — escape to the cross of Jesus Christ; stay not 



112 SERMON VIII. 



nd 



in all the haunts of sin, lest the wrath of God overtake an 
consume you. 

A little girl once went, with some other children, into a 
neighbour's orchard, to gather plums. When she brought 
them home, her mother said to her, " My child, you ought 
not to have taken the plums without leave; it was sin 
to do so. God has said, ' Thou shalt not steal.' " The little 
girl did not know before that she had done wrong. She 
burst into tears, and cried out, " I won't have these plums." 
Turning to her sister she said, very earnestly, " Why did 
you ask me to go to that plum tree ? I would not have 
gone, if you had not asked me." Then she was greatly 
distressed. Her mother could not pacify her. She felt 
that she had committed sin. Her mother at last told the 
owner of the tree how the child was troubled, and asked 
him to give her the plums and forgive her for what she had 
done. Still the child was greatly troubled. When she was 
asked why she was so distressed, she answered, " because 
it was sin." She declared she would not go to that plum tree 
again. And for a long time she had a dislike to that fruit. 
This was repentance. She was distressed for the sin ; she 
hated it, and never did so again. 

L. M. 

Show pity, Lord, Lord forgive, 
Let a repenting rebel live ; 
Are not thy mercies large and free ? 
May not a sinner trust in thee ? 

wash my soul from every sin, 
And make my guilty conscience clean ; 
Here on my heart the burden lies, 
And past offences pain my eyes. 

My lips with shame my sins confess, 
Against thy law, against thy grace ; 



WHAT REPENTANCE IS. 113 

Lord, should thy judgment grow severe, 
I am condemned, but thou art clear. 

Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord, 
Whose hope, still hovering round thy word, 
Would light on some sweet promise there, 
Some sure support against despair. 

Questions. — 1. Can a man be saved without repentance ? 2. Does 
a man truly repent of sin when he is only a little sorry for it? 3. 
How must he show his repentance ? 4. What will become of a man 
if he does not fly from sin? 5. What did Lot do when the angels 
told him to escape ? 6. How did the good old servant show his re- 
pentance ? 7. Have you any sins to repent of? 8. Who have your 
sins been committed against? 9. Who forgives sinners when they 
repent ? 10. Can any man ever live with Jesus who does not repent ? 



10* 



SERMON IX. 

THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY; OR, LOT 
HASTENED AWAY TO ZOAR. 



BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 
Haste thee, escape thither. — Gen. xix. 22. 






When the angels of the Lord had led Lot out of Sodom, 
they pointed him to the mountain, and said, " Escape for 
thy life." But the mountain was far off. It looked barren 
and lonely. Lot had lived in plenty and pleasure in Sodom. 
He had houses, and riches, and friends there. Must he 
now go to live in a mountain so distant and dark ? He said 
to himself, "I cannot bear the thought." He was afraid 
some evil would happen to him, and that he would die 
there. Yet Lot was a good man. He felt that his only 
help was in God. He looked across the plains that stretched 
out so far around Sodom, and saw a little city standing 
between him and the mountain. In this hour of trouble he 
turned to God for help. He prayed that he would let him 
fly to that city and be safe. God is a God of mercy. He 
listened to the prayer of Lot, and in answer, told him that, 
for his sake, he would not destroy that little city with the 
other cities of the plain. God then said to him, "Haste 
thee, escape thither." As if he had not a moment to lose, 
(114) 



THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY. 115 

he urged him onward until he entered the city. It was a 
mild and beautiful morning. The sun rose as bright as it 
ever did before. When Lot and his two daughters entered 
the city of Zoar, the hills, and fields, and vallies looked rich 
and bright as they had always looked. Little did the un- 
happy people of Sodom, and of the country around, dream 
that before the sun could go. down that evening their great 
city would be a heap of ruins, and not a man of its inhabit- 
ants be left. Lot had barely gone into Zoar when the 
storm of fire began. It was a pouring out of the Lord's 
wrath on that wicked city. He rained upon Sodom and 
Gomorrah brimstone and fire out of heaven. The fruits 
of the ground were burnt up — the rich valley was made a 
barren waste — the cities were entirely destroyed, and the 
places where they stood can no more be seen. What a warn- 
ing is this to every sinner to hasten away to Christ his 
Saviour ! Our Lord once said with his own lips, " as it 
was in the days of Lot so shall it be also in the days of the 
Son of Man." He tells us that a day shall come when the 
heavens will be set on fire, and melt away with a great 
noise. Then the earth also, with all the works in it, shall 
be burned up. He has told you plainly that upon the un- 
godly he will rain fire, and brimstone, and tempest ; that 
the wrcked shall not go unpunished; that they shall be 
turned into hell ; that the smoke of their torment ascendeth 
up for ever and ever. On that terrible day the world will 
be what Sodom was. The wrath of God will be poured out 
upon it in a tempest of fire and brimstone. Every sinner, 
who has not gone to Jesus for salvation, is in danger of 
being overtaken by this wrath. You may not fear it ; but 
this will not prevent its coming. The people of Sodom 
laughed at Lot when he warned them of the coming de- 



116 SERMON IX. 

struction. But this did not drive the storm back. This 
moment, while you sit here, the wrath of God is coming 
nearer to you. It is nearer to you now than it was this 
morning. It will be nearer to you to-night than it is now. 
While you listen to me, and are thinking that you will soon 
make your escape, this wrath hangs over you. Before you 
shall hear another sermon, it may come down upon you in 
a fire that shall never be quenched. 

My friends, if these were merely my warnings they would 
not be worth noticing. But they are the warnings of God, who 
delighteth in mercy and not in wrath. His ear is open this 
moment to your prayers, as it was to the prayer of Lot, 
His arm is this moment able to help you in your escape 
from sin, as it was to help Lot from Sodom. He has 
opened a house of refuge and safety for you in Jesus 
Christ, as he did in the city of Zoar for Lot. Oh! flv 
to that Saviour, like Lot to Zoar, and be safe. I warn 
and beseech you, in the sight of God, and in view of his 
coming wrath, " Haste thee, escape thither." Jesus is your 
only hope. If you repent not, if you turn not to him, you 
cannot escape the damnation of hell. He has said, " Ex- 
cept ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." You can no 
more be saved without repenting of your sins, and coming 
to God for mercy, than you can make the hard ground 
bring forth corn without breaking it up. The deep roots 
of sin in your heart must be torn up by the plough of re- 
pentance. Without this the precious seed of God's blessed 
promises can never grow there. If you do not repent of 
your sins now, you will have to repent some day or other, 
I know it is painful and distressing to go and feel, and con- 
fess what a wretched sinner you are. But still, if you 
would escape the damnation of hell, it must be done. If 






THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY. 117 

you were about to die under some violent sickness, it might 
be necessary to give you the most disgusting and nauseous 
medicines. You might dislike to take them. Still, if you 
would be cured, you must take them. One of your legs 
might be in a state of mortification. To cut it off would 
be painful. Still, to save your life, it must be done. So, 
too, with repentance. Painful as repentance may be, it 
must be exercised, or the soul must die eternally. Kepent- 
ance is the medicine which Christ administers to you. If 
you will not take it, he cannot cure you of the dreadful 
poison of sin. Repentance is the knife with which he 
cuts off all sins from your soul. If you will not let him 
cut them off, your soul must perish for ever. 

This, then, is your condition before God. You are con- 
demned and helpless sinners. You have spent all your 
life in sin. You love it. You will not and cannot, of your- 
self, escape from it. Yet I point you to Jesus Christ, 
and I say to you, " Haste thee, escape thither." Here you 
ask me, "how shall I escape to Christ ? You say that I am 
by nature a sinner ; that I am so wicked that I have no 
power of myself to escape from sin. How then can I help 
my situation ? You had as well blame a sick person for 
dying, as to blame me for sinning, or for not being saved. 
It is my misfortune, and not my fault ; and surely God 
will not punish me for it." This looks like very good rea- 
soning, but let us look at this matter a little closer. 

It would certainly be hard, my friends, very hard and 
unjust to punish you for what you cannot help. It would 
have been very unjust to pour out on the people of Sodom 
such a tempest of fire and brimstone for their sins, if they 
had never heard of God, or his law; if they had never 
heard that they were sinners, or never been warned to escape 



118 SERMON IX. 

from their wickedness. It would have been very unjust 
to punish Lot with them, had no warning been sent to him, 
and no means given him to make his escape from the city. 
It would be very hard and unjust to punish a man for what 
he cannot help. But suppose Lot had staid quietly in 
Sodom, and said to himself, " The providerce of God has 
placed me here. I cannot help my situation." Would he 
not have been destroyed with the city ? And who would 
have been to blame but himself ? If you were lying on a 
sick bed it would be very unjust for your master to punish 
you because you were about to die. No one could blame 
you for this, if no physician and no medicines could be 
had to cure you. But suppose, in that case, you should 
choose to be obstinate, and would not let the physician feel 
your pulse ? Suppose you would not tell him how you felt, 
or where your pain was ? Suppose you would not take 
his medicines, nor apply any of his blisters ? Who is 
to blame if you die? Are you not guilty of your own 
death ? Can any one say that you are not then to blame 
if you die ? Certainly not ; for you have deliberately re- 
fused to take medicines which would have cured you. But 
suppose- that this physician is a very kind and generous 
man. He hears of your sickness. He does not wait to 
be sent for, but hastens off with speed the moment he hears 
that you are ill. He comes to your bedside, and in the 
tender est language says, " I heard of your sickness, my 
friend, and have come to see you. You are very ill. Your 
disease is one which will certainly destroy you if it is not 
stopped. But I have a medicine which I know will cure 
you. It has been tried in thousands of cases just like 
yours, and has never failed. I will give it to you if you 
will take it. It is worth more than this house full of gold 



THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY. 119 

to you ; and you shall have it without pay." Look now at 
this physician by your side. See him taking from his 
pocket that precious medicine. How skilfully does he pre- 
pare it. Now he offers it to you with a look of anxious and 
earnest affection. But you say, " Wait a moment." You 
ask, a Is it disagreeable?" and then you refuse to take it. 
He offers it again. You reply that some of your friends 
have advised you not to take such medicines, and say that 
a glass of brandy will do you more good than that. After 
all, you resolve not to touch it, and the physician is sent 
away. Can you blame him if he should never come back 
again ? Is he to blame ? Is your master to blame if you 
die ? Is any one to blame but yourself? And may it not 
be said that your death was the result of your own folly ? 

Now this is just the way that Jesus your Saviour has 
come to you. He is the great physician of your soul. He 
warns you of your danger as the angels warned Lot. He 
offers to save you without money and without price. Yet 
he will not force his salvation upon you. You are free to 
accept it, or not, as you choose. But if you refuse it, do 
not deceive yourself by saying that you could not help it ; 
that you are not to blame. You will see in the great day 
of judgment that you have destroyed yourself. 

A man was once shut up in prison, loaded with chains, 
and condemned to be hung. He had been taken a prisoner 
in war by a cruel tyrant, and knew that there was no hope 
for him if he could not, in some way, make his escape. In 
the dead hour of night, when all his guards were sound 
asleep, and not a footstep was to be heard around his prison, 
the door of his dungeon was opened, his general entered 
and took off his chains, and said to him, " Haste thee, 
escape from this place. I have, at immense expense, and 



120 SERMON IX. 

terrible exposure of my life, entered this prison to save 
you. Follow me, and I will guide you safely. But you 
have not a moment to lose. An hour's delay may prove 
for ever too late." What will you think when I tell you 
that the prisoner said, " Let me think about it — wait a little 
while;" and then actually refused to go with him? Who 
was to blame for that man's death, but himself? This is 
precisely the way that sinners, condemned and bound by 
Satan to be shut up in the dark prison of despair, act when 
Jesus, the great captain of our salvation, comes to set them 
free. 

Oh ! sinner, condemned and in danger of God's wrath, 1 
entreat you to hasten away to Jesus, your only hope and 
Saviour. You have no time to waste in idle promises for 
the future. Like Lot, you have already lingered too long 
in sin. Sin is every hour sinking deeper into your soul. 
It is fastening itself tighter upon you. Satan is every 
hour binding you with stronger chains. Jesus comes now 
to help you throw them off. If you delay until to-morrow, 
he may leave you, never to return again. 

A great warrior was once persuaded by his enemies to put 
on a beautiful robe, which they presented him. Not sus- 
pecting their design, he wrapped himself tightly in it, but 
in a few moments found that it was coated on the inside 
with a deadly poison. It stuck to his flesh as if it had 
been glued. The poison entered into his flesh, so that, in 
trying to throw off the cloak, he was left torn and bleed- 
ing. But did he for that reason hesitate about taking it 
off ? Did he stop to think whether it was painful or not ? 
Did he say, "Let me wait and think about it awhile?" 
No, he had more sense than that. He tore it off at once, 
and threw it from him, and hastened away from it to the 



THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY. 121 

physician. Sinner, this is the way you must treat your 
sins if you would be saved. They have gone into your 
soul. If you let them alone you perish. You must not 
fear the pain of repentance. You should cast them from 
you as poison, and hasten away by faith to Jesus Christ, 
the onrj physician who can cure you, by his own blood 
applied to your hearts. Do this, or your sins will consume 
you like fire. 

And do it now. " Now is the accepted time ; now is 
the day of salvation." A sprightly boy, who was the pride 
of his master, who was loved by all his fellow-servants, once 
came to me to talk about his soul's salvation. He had 
heard that to live in sin was to live in rebellion against 
God, and in great danger. He felt that he was a sinner. 
He knew that he ought to forsake his sins. He talked 
freely with me about himself. Before we parted, he 
promised to begin the service of God the next day. He 
went off to his business. I saw him no more for about 
three months. As I was riding along one day his master 
met me, and asked me to go in and see William, for that 
was his name, who was very sick. I found him very ill, 
and about to die. Surely, said I to myself, he is prepared 
and willing to go, for I remember his promises and good 
resolutions to begin the next day. I said to him, " Wil- 
liam, I hope Christ is precious to you now V " Oh ! sir," 
said he, " I have no hope in Christ ! I fear I am lost. I 
resolved when I saw you last, to repent and be a Christian 
the next day. But the next day brought something that 
prevented me, and caused me to put it off until the next 
day still, and so I thought at the end of every day, that I 
would begin the next day. But every day passed on and 
closed in the same way. And here I am yet, a hardened 

11 



122 SERMON IX. 

sinner, and in the arms of death." I tried to tell him 
about Jesus as his Saviour. I prayed for him. And while 
I was repeating some precious promises from the word of 
Grod, he turned to me and said, " Oh ! sir, it is too late ; I 
am lost. I cannot be saved now. Tell my fellow-servants 
not to put off another day making their peace with God." 
Scarcely had he given this testimony of the danger of de- 
lay, when he was overcome by stupor and delirium, and 
thus died in darkness and impenitence. 

Along the sea shore, in some places, there are ranges of 
high rocks. Against these the winds and storms often drive 
the waves and tides of the sea with great fury. But when 
the tide is down, and the heavens are calm, a broad sandy 
place is left between the sea and these rocks, and one who 
had never seen the sea in a storm there, would suppose the 
waves never reached those rocks. One day a gentleman 
was walking along on the sand between the rocks and the 
sea, picking up shells and little stones. The day was bright 
and calm, and the grand sea on one side, and the rugged 
rocks on the other, made him forget that the tide would 
soon be up. So he went on gathering shells. Presently 
he felt a little breeze fanning his face ; the sea began to 
roar ; he looked, and a wave was seen in the distance. He 
said, " Oh, I have time enough yet. Yonder is a place in 
the rocks where I can easily get up." The shells were 
pretty, and he went on gathering them. But the waves 
came on one after another, nearer and nearer ; at last they 
lash his very feet. He then moved off to make his escape. 
But he had deceived himself in supposing the rocks were 
so near to him. He flew for his life, while the waves pur- 
sued him like some terrible enemy. He mounted the rocks 
at the nearest possible point. He did not ask, " Will my 






THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY. 123 

hands be torn in the attempt to climb ? Will not the storm 
cease ? He did not say, " I am not to blame for my dan- 
gerous situation." No. He struggled for life, and by tre- 
mendous effort, and through great danger, he escaped by 
climbing to the top. He was barely saved. 

Sinner, see yourself in a condition more dangerous, infi- 
nitely more dangerous, than this. The dreadful waves of 
the burning, fiery lake, are lashing at your feet. Will you 
amuse yourself longer with the toys and trifles of sin ? 
Escape, I beseech you, from the swelling and raging wrath 
of God. Fly to the rock of repentance. Jesus stands on 
the top, with arms stretched out. See him there, beckon- 
ing you away. Hear him promising to save you, and say- 
ing, " Why will ye die?" Oh ! listen to him crying now, 
"Haste thee, escape hither." 

An industrious young man once made a profession of re- 
ligion and joined the church. He felt that he had been 
convinced of sin, and thought that his heart was changed. 
But after a while he fell into bad company, and soon got 
into the habit of drinking ardent spirits. It was not long 
before he became a great burden to his own family, and a 
pest to all around him. After drinking for several days, 
one night he dreamed he was returning home from one of 
his drunken revels, and getting as far as the top of the 
steps, he dreamed that he fell from the top to the bottom, 
and broke his neck, and then opened his eyes in hell. 
There he found the most wicked and drunken people from 
every nation under heaven. They were singing, and bel- 
lowing, and drinking, as he had so often seen them do in 
the tippling shop. At last he turned to the great governor 
of the place, and said to him, " What awful lies they tell us 
in the other world ! They try to make us believe that hell 



124 SERMON IX. 

is a place of endless fire and brimstone, where sinners are 
kept burning to all eternity ; but all is mirth and jollity 
here ; I think I shall like this place very well." When he 
had said this, every eye was fixed in horrid gaze upon him, 
as if to say, what a wretch you are ! Then, rising from 
their seats, each one tore open a cloak which had before 
hid them from his view ; and behold they were solid bodies 
of living fire, from the crown of their heads to the sole of 
their feet. When the wretched man saw this, he grew pale, 
and speechless with horror. His very soul seemed to die 
in him, and he implored the governor to let him escape for 
his life. But, "No, no," said the governor, " there is no 
quitting this place. You see thousands coming in, but 
none going out." " Oh !" said the young man, "if I had 
known what a place of horror this is, I should have lived 
a different life. I never would have come to this place of 
torment. I implore you to let me out on any conditions." 
" Then," said the governor, " I will let you out on one con- 
dition, and that is, that you return here this day twelve 
months." "I will," said he, flying from hell for his life. 
In this effort he awoke from his awful dream. He sprang 
up in great terror, and ran to his long neglected minister 
to tell him what he had dreamed. The minister listened 
to him with great anxiety, and said, " It is of the Lord's 
mercy that you are now out of hell. If you do not hear 
his dreadful warnings, and repent of sin, and begin a new 
course of life, God will certainly cut short your days, and 
you will make your bed in hell, where the worm dieth 
not, and the fire is not quenched." He told him, too, 
"Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salva- 
tion. To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your 
heart." This young man seemed greatly alarmed. He 



THE SINNER NO TIME FOR DELAY. 125 

solemnly promised to live a different life. He quit all his 
bad company ; he went to hard work. He soon made his 
family comfortable, and brought home his wages every 
Saturday night. He went on in this steady, industrious 
course, for six months. One Saturday evening he was 
going home with his week's wages to his little family ; he 
met some of his old companions. They were going to a 
drinking shop. First they tried to persuade him to go with 
them. But he said, "JN'o, I cannot." Then they began to 
laugh at him. They called him a cold water man ; a Metho- 
dist, and other such names. He told them that he was 
happier than when he drank. But to prove to them that 
he was no Methodist, he said he would go with them, ana 
take one glass. This he did. This glass led on to another, 
and another. At last he began again to go to the tippling 
shop. In a very short time he became worse than ho ever 
was before. Then for a few months he went on drinking 
like a madman. One night as he was going into his house 
drunk, he fell from the top to the bottom of the steps, and 
broke his neck. He was taken up dead. The next morn- 
ing notice was sent to the minister to go and bury him. 
Then the striking dream was brought back to his mind. 
The minister went to his book, and saw there, that just 
that day twelve months the young man had told him of the 
dream. What a warning is this to every sinner not to 
trust to his mere convictions for salvation ! 

L. M. 

While life prolongs its precious light, 

Mercy is found and peace is given ; 
But soon, ah soon ! approaching night 

Shall blot out every hope of heaven. 
11* 



126 SERMON IX. 

"While God invites, how blest the day, 
How sweet the gospel's charming sound ; 

Come, sinners, haste, haste away, 
While yet a pardoning God is found. 

Soon, borne on time's untiring wing, 
Shall death command you to the grave, 

Before his bar your souls shall bring, 
And none be found to hear or save. 

In that lone land of deep despair, 

No Sabbath's heavenly light shall rise, 

No God regard your bitter prayer, 
Nor Saviour call you to the skies. 

Questions. — 1. When the angels had led Lot cut of Sodom, what 
did they say to him ? 2. Where did he ask God to let him go to ? 
3. What happened to Sodom as Lot went into Zoar? 4. What does 
Christ warn sinners to flee from? 5. Who is the sinner's only hope, 
as he escapes from sin ? 6. Who is to blame if you perish in your 
sins ? 7. When ought sinners to escape from sin ? 8. Who has 
promised to help the sinner in his attempts to escape from sin ? 



SERMON X. 

PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON. 

BY THE KEV. WM M. JACKSON. 
And he said, A certain man had trw\. sons, &c. — Luke xv. 11 — 24. 

This beautiful story, which you have often heard before, 
is called a parable. A parable, you know, means a com- 
parison. It is to make something plain to us ; to help us 
to understand something that we ought to know, or to teach 
us something that we ought to do. 

The parable you have just heard, is meap* to show us 
how it is with a sinner, when he becomes very wicked, and 
forsakes God altogether ; and then how it is with him when 
he becomes sorry for his wickedness, and goes to God for 
pardon. Every man is a sinner, and every little child is a 
child of sin. We are all like the prodigal son, in some 
things, and if you will attend to what I am going to say, 
you will see that one half the story is exactly suited to 
yourself. I hope it may all be suited to yourself, before 
very long, and that in every thing you may be like him. 

It was a very wicked thing for him to go away from his 
father's house. There he had every thing that was good 
for him, plenty of food and clothing, and his father loved 
him. But his bad heart was not satisfied with all that. 

Q27) 



128 SERMON X. 

He wanted to be his own master. He could not bear to be 
under his father's authority. He did not want to be re- 
strained from doing some wicked things, that were pleasant 
to him. He did not like to have his father's eye always 
watching him. And so he gathered up all his things — his 
clothes and his money — and went away. That's just the 
way with every sinful man. He does not like to be under 
God's law. He wants to be free to do just what he chooses ; 
and so he tries to go away from God. He does not want 
to be near him. He does not like even to think about him. 

The father did not drive the prodigal son from his house. 
No. He went of his own accord. And just so, when every 
sinner wanders from his heavenly Father. He. goes of his 
own accord. Nobody drives him. God does not drive him 
away. Oh, no ! He never drove any man to do what was 
wrong. It is a bad heart that makes us do bad things. 

And where did that young man go ? Did he stay in the 
neighbourhood ? No ! " He took a journey into a far 
country." He went into a strange land and among strange 
people. And so it is that every bad man does when he 
keeps on doing wicked things. The more he sins, the fur- 
ther he wanders away from God. He loves to be among 
people that are strangers to God. 

But what does he gain by his wickedness ? What did 
that young man gain ? For a short time, indeed, he lived 
well. While his money lasted, he enjoyed himself; and he 
felt that it was a fine thing to be his own master ; to do just 
as he chose ; to drink, and frolic, and feast with his wicked 
companions, and to indulge his sinful inclinations. Very 
pleasant it must have been, as long as it lasted. But the 
pleasures of sin never last long. By and by his money 
began to give out, and after a little while it was all gone ; 



PAKABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON. 129 

and, to make matters worse, " there arose a mighty famine 
in that land;" — bread was very scarce, and he had no 
money to buy food with, and hunger began to pinch him, 
so that he was almost ready to starve. And then, I sup- 
pose, he had to sell his clothes to buy himself bread, for 
the wicked men who were his friends before, cared nothing 
for him now. What shall he do ? Wretchedness, and misery, 
and death are staring him in the face. What shall he do ? 
Go back to his father ? No, no. He had not yet come to him- 
self. Far better would it have been for him, if he had done so 
at once, and confessed his sin ; for then he would have saved 
himself the bitter troubles that afterwards came upon him. 
And if every sinner would only go to Jesus the moment he 
begins to see his danger and his guilt, how much better it would 
be for him. But the prodigal had not yet " a broken and 
a contrite heart." That was the reason he did not go back 
to his father, as soon as he " began to be in want." Al- 
though there was not one thing in the land he cared for — 
no more riotous living — no more pleasure — nothing but 
poverty and misery — yet he cannot go back to his father. 
His proud heart is not yet humbled, and he cannot bring 
himself to acknowledge that he has done wrong. 

And now, I think I see him, all pale and hungry, stand- 
ing at the door of a rich man. He has gone there to hire 
himself as a servant. And what did the rich man do ? 
He hired him, but for what kind of work ? " He sent him 
into his fields to feed swine." 0, Satan is a hard master, 
and all he wants, is to make his servants as filthy and as 
hateful to God as possible. 

But how wretched did that young man now become ! 
Trouble and sorrow came down heavy upon him. There he 
was, far away from his father's house — in a land of famine 



130 SERMON X. 

— glad to get even " the husks that the swine did eat/' to 
satisfy his hunger; but his cruel master refused to give 
him even that ; and when he went to beg fyr food at other 
people's doors, they, too, drove him away. u No man gave 
unto him." Perhaps they had not any food to give, and 
even if they had, they were too cruel to give any to him. 
How miserable did he become by his wickedness ! And so 
it must be with every sinner. Sooner or later he will be 
worse off than that young man was, unless he does as that 
young man did. Sin always brings misery. If it does not 
bring it at first, it brings it afterwards. And the further 
we wander from God, the further do we get into a land of 
famine, where there's nothing for the soul to eat — nothing 
to make us truly happy. yes, in the world, away from 
God, we are always wanting something, and never satisfied. 
" The world can never give the bliss for which we sigh." 
But, when the sinner becomes a sincere Christian, then 
Jesus gives him peace and happiness, more than all the 
world beside could give. The humblest servant of Jesus is 
a thousand times better off than the greatest and the rich- 
est man upon earth who is a sinner. But now the poor 
prodigal, at last, begins to think seriously about his con- 
dition. Indeed, his sufferings were enough to make him 
think. His' clothes were worn away to rags. He had 
nothing to sleep on but the naked ground. His strength 
was almost gone. The flesh was wearing away upon his 
bones, and he hadn't a single friend that he could talk to. 
How natural that he should think of home ! There, he 
knew, the "hired servants had bread enough and to 
spare," "and here am I," said he to himself, "perishing 
with hunger." But he thought of something besides that. 
He thought about his wickedness. Yes, and he felt it too. 



PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON. 131 

His proud heart was bowed down to the dust. Now he's 
ready to humble himself at his father's feet. And he 
makes the happy determination, " I will arise and go to 
my father, and will say unto him; Father, I have sinned 
against heaven, and before thee, and am not worthy to be 
called thy son ; make me as one of thy hired servants." 

Do you know why he felt that he was not worthy to 
be called his father's son? I will tell you. There were 
three reasons. First, because he knew how filthy and un- 
clean he was. He knew how degraded and abominable he 
had become. Another reason was, because he had done so 
many wicked things, and felt himself to be so guilty. And 
the other reason was, because he had no interest now in his 
father's property. He had received his share and spent it 
all; and now he felt that, as he had no claim upon his 
father, he could ask for nothing more than to be made as 
one of his " hired servants." 

Now this is the very picture of a man when he feels 
himself a sinner.* Like the prodigal son, he sees his danger. 
He is convinced that, if he keeps on being a sinner-, he 
must perish. Yes ! perish in everlasting fire. He thinks 
of God's people — how happy they are ! — and, above all, he 
feels himself to be a sinner. His heart, so full of wicked 
thoughts and tempers, and all uncleanness ! — and then, his 
actions, — how guilty he has made himself by them ! Oil 
have been so ungrateful to my heavenly Father. He has 
been good to me. He h^ spared me; and yet I have 
grieved him, and been forgetful of him ; and although I do 
not deserve any thing but to be driven out of his sight and 
punished, yet I will go to him. I will confess my sins. I'll 
tell him how bad I feel myself to be. I'll tell him that I 



132 SERMON X. 

do not deserve any thing at his hands ; but I will pray to 
him to forgive me for Jesus' sake ! 

And he is like the prodigal son in another thing. I will 
tell you what it is. When the prodigal son had determined 
to go back to his father, nothing then could keep him from 
going. There were many things to discourage him. The 
journey was a long one, and he had no shoes on his feet. 
The very clothes on his back were all in rags, so that, if he 
went at all, he must go barefoot, and half naked, for he 
had no money to buy either shoes or clothing with. And 
then he was very weak, for long had it been since he had 
tasted a morsel of solid food. But all this did not prevent 
him. He did not wait until he could buy a better coat. 
No, no ! He determined to go, just as he was — hungry, 
and barefooted, and all in rags, and with the little strength 
he had left, to undertake that long and tiresome* journey. 

That is precisely the way with the penitent sinner. 
Nothing can keep him from going to Christ. He strives 
hard to get to him. A thousand difficulties may stare him 
in the face, but he breaks through them all. He does not 
wait until he is better. He does not wait to get a right- 
eousnes of his own. No. He goes as a poor wretch, with 
his heart depraved, with his filthy rags of sin upon him, 
and he says, 

'• Just as I am, and waiting not, 
To rid my soul of one dark blot, 
To thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot, 

Lamb of God, I come V 

So that you see humility is always a part of true repent- 
ance. 

And now the returning prodigal is almost home. He has 



PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON. 133 

been striving hard to get there. He has had a great deal 
to suffer. Perhaps the people in that land began to laugh 
at him, when they saw him going back ; and on that weary 
road he must have become very tired, but still he kept on, 
and now he is in sight of his father's house. Do you not 
wish to know how his father received him ? The Saviour 
says, " When he was yet a great way off, his father saw 
him." And what did he do, when he saw him? Did he 
order the servants to bar the gates and bolt the doors 
against him ? Did he cry out, " There comes that wicked 
child, but let him not enter into my presence?" 0, no! 
" When he saw him, he had compassion, and ran," — and 
the servants, they, too, ran with him — and he " fell on his 
neck, and kissed him." 0, what a meeting was that ! 
There was the poor young man, pale with hunger and 
fatigue ; his feet swollen and bleeding ; his clothes hang- 
ing in rags on his back ; his head bowed down with shame, 
and the tears streaming from his eyes. And there was the 
father. Not one look of anger in his countenance. Not a 
word of reproach upon his tongue. No, not so much as, 
"Ah, see what you've got by your wickedness !" No, no ; 
not a word of any kind. He could not speak, his heart 
was so full. It was only one long, warm embrace in his 
arms, and kisses upon the pale cheek of his wretched child. 
What did the prodigal do ? Did he begin to make ex- 
cuses ? No. He confessed his sin at once, and said, 
" Father I have sinned against Heaven, and before thee, 
and am no more worthy to be called thy son," and then he 
was going to say, "Make me as one of thy servants," but 
his father interrupted him, by turning round to the ser- 
vants, who stood there weeping tears of joy, and said to 
them, "Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and 

12 



134 SERMON X. 

put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet ; and bring 
hither the fatted calf, and kill it, and let us eat and be 
merry ; for this my son was dead and is alive again ; was 
lost and is found." 

0, sinner ! that is the very way that God will receive 
you, when you turn from your wickedness, and go to him 
in sorrow and in faith. 

You are now in your sins, like that young man once 
was ; far, far away from God ; but only forsake your sins, 
and go, as he went, humble and penitent, and trusting in 
his mercy, through Jesus Christ, and you, .too, will receive 
a joyful welcome, for you know he has said, " Him that 
cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out." Jesus, the 
blessed Saviour, will wash away your guilt, and he will put 
a robe upon you, white and beautiful as those the angels 
wear — the robe of his own righteousness. There's not a 
better one than that in all the world. That is " the best 
robe" — the very best that heaven itseit can furnish — and 
it shall be your's. Yes ; if you only throw away your own 
ragged clothes — I mean, if you will only throw away all the 
good things you have ever done, as if they were no better 
than filthy rags, then Jesus will give you his goodness, like 
a robe, to wear for ever and ever. The glorious angels will 
rejoice at your return, and your Christian friends will re- 
joice, and all will be music and gladness. 

But there's one thing I would like to tell you, if you are 
not too tired to hear it ; one thing, sinner, in which you are 
a thousand times better off than that prodigal son was, when 
he was in that far country, poor and miserable. No mes- 
senger was ever sent to tell him that his father would for- 
give him. No kind invitation was ever sent to him to 
return. No servant ever carried to him one word of love, 



PARABLE OF THE PRODIG AL SON. 135 

or of kindness, from his father. There was no tongue to 
whisper in his ear a breath of sweet encouragement. It is 
not so with you. God has sent his ministers to tell you 
that he is ready to forgive, to invite you, to persuade you 
to return to him. You have received a hundred invita- 
tions ! And by his Holy Spirit he has been drawing you 
back. He does not invite you and draw you because you 
are worthy to be his son. No ; you are not worthy. Your 
heart is too full of unclean thoughts. You have too often 
broken his law. And you do not deserve one good thing 
at his hands ; no, not one. You have no right to expect 
any blessing. You have no claim upon your heavenly 
Father. There's not one thing in heaven that is yours, or 
that you can say ought to be yours. 

And yet God is willing, notwithstanding all this, to take 
you back, and give you pardon, and salvation, and eternal 
glory in heaven. Do you know what makes him willing ? 
Why, because Jesus Christ, if you trust in him, washes away 
your wickedness. He has suffered the punishment that 
you deserve, and his obedience, which God looks upon as 
your obedience, makes you worthy, in his sight, of all the 
glory of heaven. 

Go back, then, poor wandering sinner, to your Father ! 
Go back, confess your sin, acknowledge your unworthiness, 
trust in Jesus. ! that God would open your eyes, and 
make you see your danger. ! that he could touch your 
heart, and make you feel the heavy load of sin. 

L. M. 

Return, wanderer, return, 

And seek an injured Father's face ; 
Those warm desires that in thee burn, 

Were kindled by reclaiming grace. 



136 SERMON X. 

Keturn, wanderer, return, 

And seek a Father's melting heart ; 
His pitying eyes thy grief discern, 

His hand shall heal thine inward smart. 

Return, wanderer, return, 

Thy Saviour bids thy spirit live ; 
Go to his bleeding feet and learn 

How freely Jesus can forgive. 

Return, wanderer, return, 

And wipe away the falling tear ; 
'Tis God who says, " No longer mourn/' 

; Tis mercy's voice invites thee near. 

Questions. — 1. What is a parable ? 2. What parable is this ? 3. 
Who does this prodigal son mean ? 4. Is it wicked for sinners to 
stay away from God? 5. What is the sinner's state while away 
from God ? 6. What will become of the sinner if he remains away ? 
7. How does a man feel when he sees himself *o be a sinner ? 8. 
How will God treat every sinner who comes to hh» bt true repent- 
ance? 



SERMON XI. 

THE WAY TO OBTAIN GOD'S FAVOUR. 



I entreated thy favour with my whole heart : be merciful unto me 
according to thy word. — Psalm cxix. 58. 

To be in favour with any one, particularly if he can do 
us good, if he can give us such things as we need, we con- 
sider a matter of very great importance. There is no one 
with whom we would not rather live on terms of good will, 
than in hatred and suspicion. Did we know that any one 
who had entire control of our property and lives was angry 
with us, and that he would not hesitate to crush us beneath 
his arm, yet that he might be soothed into quietness and 
good nature by our prayers, addressed to him, which one 
of us would not ask his favour ? 

The favour of God is said to be life, and his loving kind- 
ness better than life ? Of ail blessings, we think life the 
most valuable. What will a man not give in exchange for 
his life ? 

Should you be asked to set a price upon your lives, 
would you not be at a loss to do it ? Should you be offered 
one thousand dollars in gold for your lives, you would not 
agree to touch it. The favour of God is said by the Psalmist 
to be life, and yet, perhaps, you never ask for it. 

12* (137) 






138 SERMON XI. 

Had God dealt with you as severely as you would have 
dealt with those under your control, would you not before 
this day have been laid low in the silent grave, and your 
souls have been drinking the vials of God's indignation and 
wrath ? 

To show -you how the favour of God, who made you, is to 
be gained, is the object of the present sermon. May the 
Holy Spirit enable me to speak aright, and you to hear 
and improve the message which I am about to deliver. 

I am to show how the favour of God is to be gained. 

Truly fearful is the thought, that the best of Beings is 
angry with us. He has only to speak the word, and we 
are then made to sink beneath the power of his anger. Do 
you know what it is to provoke a kind and indulgent pa- 
rent. How did you dread to meet his eye x>r his presence ? 
It is said to be " a fearful thing to fall into the hands of 
the living God." He is said to be angry with the wicked; 
if he turn not, he will whet his sword, and cut him to 
pieces. He hath prepared for him the instruments of death. 

But he is not willing that any should perish, and hence 
it is, that he has opened a way of escape ; that is, by faith 
in the righteousness of his dear Son. Had not God laid 
help upon one who is mighty to save, surely then, we 
should all have perished, and that without remedy. One 
of the most precious truths of the Bible is this, 2 Cor. v. 19, 
that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, 
not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath com- 
mitted unto us the word of reconciliation. To obtain the 
favour of God, you must know that you can only come to 
God, through him who is the sinner's friend. And when 
you learn that Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, 
then it is that you are to pray him to be merciful to you, 



THE WAY TO OBTAIN GOD'S FAVOUR. 139 

and to grant to you some evidence of his favour and sal- 
, vation. 

The favour of God can only he had hy diligent use of 
the means of grace. To make a crop, we have to prepare 
the ground, then sow the seed, and then reap. To secure 
the favour of God is of more worth to us than every thing 
else in which we have ever been engaged. It can only be 
done by begging for it in humility and faith. How many 
of you have thus acted ? Can you tell the time ? Was it 
in the morning, or at night, when you bowed your knees 
before high heaven, and confessed your guilt, and prayed 
the Lord to pardon your sins, and lift upon you the light 
of his countenance reconciled ? 

For all I know, conscience may declare that you never 
yet prayed to God. If so, you have been heaping up more 
guilt by disobeying another command — "worship God." 
When we remember that God's ear is always open to the 
prayers of his creatures, it seems strange that they are not 
constantly asking some blessing at his hands. How few 
thus are ! How many are there who spend whole days and 
weeks, without thanking God for one in a thousand of the 
mercies which are freely given them ! 

Ungrateful creatures as we are, would it not be just in 
God to cut us down and make us miserable for ever ? 

Had you been struck blind for one week, or had you been 
Buffering with the ear ache until you lost your hearing, 
would you not be deeply thankful to have it once more re- 
stored to you? Or had you been on a journey for some 
days, and unable to find water to slake your thirst, when it 
was brought to you would you not be very thankful ? Now 
has not God granted you all these blessings ? He did not 
even wait to be asked for them. If for these blessings you 



140 SERMON XI. 

have never given thanks, then, of all God's creatures, you 
must be most deeply guilty. And this is another reason 
which should lead you to seek the favour of God. There 
may be some here, who say that they have so acted, but are 
not sensible that they have gained it. And why not ? Be- 
cause they have sought it as if they cared very little 
whether they got it. Before you ask for a blessing you 
must feel your need of it. God, in his holy word, declares 
that those who seek aright, (i. e.,) "with the whole heart," 
shall find. 

Do you, indeed, believe that the favour of God is need- 
ful to make you happy ? If so, you will surely seek it with 
zeal and diligence. Before you can have it, the whole heart 
must be engaged. Your determination must be, " I will 
not let thee go until thou bless me." While you love the 
world, you need not expect that God will make you his 
child. So soon as you become willing to give up the world, 
and give up yourselves in soul and body to Christ, then 
may you expect that he will be favourable, and pardon all 
your sins. What is there which you love more than you 
love the favour of God ? Whatever it may be, you should 
put it away without a moment's hesitation. Compared with 
the favour of God, there is nothing which you ought either 
to value or desire. 

Another reason why you have not found God's blessing 
is, that you did not seek it perseveringly. 

When you were bowed down upon the bed of sickness, 
when you were in great danger by water, or in the storm, 
you then begged the favour of God. But when the danger 
passed away, what then were your feelings ? Did you then 
go on praying God to be merciful to you. There was a 
coloured man who was in the habit of doing in this way. 



THE WAT TO OBTAIN GOD S FAVOUR. 141 

Whenever he was taken sick, he became very much alarmed. 
He would then pray to God to spare his life, to raise him 
up once more from the bed of sickness. You could hear 
his cry for mercy afar off. Strange as it may seem, as soon 
as he would get well, he would go on in his old way, en- 
tirely thoughtless about his soul and a better world. How 
can you think that the favour of God was to be obtained 
in this way ? Surely not. What would you think of one 
of your children who should be very dutiful to you, that 
you might do him an act of kindness, and should then turn 
away from you with hatred, and not notice or even speak 
to you ? Would you think that child ever loved or respected 
you ? Could he freely claim any favour at your hands ? 
How then can you expect the favour of God, when you ask 
for it only when you are sick, or think that death is to drag 
you to his bar, and do not go on seeking it when you are 
raised up to health ? I do not wonder that you have not 
gained this great blessing. 

Did you want some earthly blessing, would you seek it 
when you were least likely to get it ? What would you 
think of one who should start on a journey when he was 
very sick, hardly able to hold up his head, or to sit upon 
his horse ? What is seeking the favour of God, or getting 
religion, but journeying to heaven ? And yet you put it 
off until you get very sick. 

What if some one were to promise you a large sum of 
money, if you would travel twenty miles after it. Would 
you put off starting until you came to be very sick ? 

So important is this blessing to your present and eternal 
happiness, that you should seek it every day of your life. 
Never rest satisfied until you find it. When you rise in 
the morning, during the day, and at night, you should seek 



142 SERMON XI. 

it. How is it with you ? Do you feel it to be of more 
worth to you than all things else ? Are you, therefore, 
constantly seeking it ? You should never permit your 
minds to be turned off from it. 

Further, you must seek it through the Lord Jesus Christ. 
God is very merciful; but he is only merciful through the 
righteousness of him who has stood in the sinner's place, 
who in his own person bore our sins upon the accursed tree. 
You may count largely upon the mercy of God, but only 
through Christ. 

In the Bible, God teaches us how he can be just, and yet 
justify the believer. The Lord Jesus Christ was altogether 
obedient to the violated law of God, that we might not 
perish, but have eternal life. The law under which our first 
parents were placed, required full and perfect obedience, in 
thought, word, and deed ; an obedience which, after sin 
entered the heart, and corrupted it, could not possibly be 
rendered. Then it was that man must perish, or obedience 
must be paid by another. The Lord Jesus Christ, the eter- 
nal Son of the Father, came to earth to take upon himself 
the form of man, "was born^of a woman, made under the 
law to redeem them that were under the law." The law 
had been violated, and its penalty must be satisfied. The 
soul that sinneth shall die. We, then, or he who stands 
in our stead, must die. The sentence of the law was put 
upon him who stood in our stead, and by his stripes we are 
healed. He obeyed the law in our stead, and it is only 
through him that God can be merciful to the sinner. 
Pray the Lord, then, for the sake of Jesus Christ, to be 
merciful to you. Though you may have grown old in sin s 
yet, coming to God through Christ, he will not cast you 
off. As the father ran to meet his prodigal son, when he 



THE WAY TO OBTAIN GOD*S FAVOUR. 143 

saw him afar off, so the Lord will run by his word, his 
Spirit, and his ministers, to make you welcome to all the 
blessings of his house. Is God at this moment willing to 
receive you into covenant with himself? And can you 
refuse to come to him and receive such mercy at his 
hands ? To some who listen to my voice he has been mer- 
ciful. But it was not until they came to him in the way 
which he has marked out in his own blessed word. Come, 
then, dying men, and pray the Lord to be merciful to you, 
according to his own word. Lord, give me mercy, not in 
my way, but in thy way. Lord, give me thy favour, thy 
salvation. Had you a deep water to pass, and there was 
but one narrow path to go safely across, would you not 
very closely note that down? Why, then, when we tell 
you most solemnly, that there is but one way to God, and 
that is through Christ, why, then, will you not come in this 
way ? Does he not very tenderly invite ? " Come unto me 
all ye that travail, and are heavy laden, and I will give 
you rest." "Whosoever will, let him take of the waters 
of life freely." Have you no love for your never dying 
souls ? Have you no care whether you are saved or lost ? 
Why, then, do you not come to Jesus Christ for the par- 
don of your sins ? God has blessed your fathers and 
mothers, brothers and sisters. Some of them have died in 
the faith of the gospel, and are made happy in heaven. 
How can you be so unmindful of their bright examples, and 
of their godly exhortations, as to live on in neglect of sal- 
vation, and the things which only can make you happy ? 
While you are thus waiting, death may be standing at the 
door. It might be with some one of you as it was with an 
old coloured woman, who, not many weeks since, went to 
bed at night in usual health. Not coming down the next 



144 SERMON XI. 

morning, search was made for her. She was found lying a 
lifeless corpse upon that bed to which she had gone to rest 
her wearied limbs. Had it been so with you the last night, 
where would you now be? Would you not have been 
awfully alarmed to have awaked up, and found yourselves 
standing before the great throne of God ? And then, oh, 
how fearful to be found wanting ! to be charged with hav- 
ing neglected the never dying soul, with having waded 
through a Saviour's blood into the abyss of wo. 

To be saved from the power and from the punishment of 
sin, we must follow the express directions of God's book. 

It would be just as wise in you to expect to find your 
way to a place where you had never been, and of which you 
had never heard, as to expect the favour of God without 
using the means. You must pray for it. Perhaps you say 
that you do not know how to pray. If you felt the need 
of it you would soon learn. When you are hungry, you 
know very well how to ask for a piece of bread and meat ; 
so if you were hungry for the bread of life, you would not 
lack words to tell your desires and wants. When this 
precious Bible is read to you, do you not remember some 
such passage as this : " God be merciful to me, a sinner ?" 
There, then, is a short prayer which you can remember, 
which you can take with you to a throne of grace. Offered 
up in faith, it will unlock for you the very door of heaven. 
The publican, who used these words, went down justified or 
or pardoned. So will i' be with you, if you will only make 
this prayer your own ; if you will only use it in earnest. 

There is another very short and simple prayer which you 
should use. It is this : " Lord, save me, or I perish." So 
soon as Peter offered up this prayer, the Saviour reached 
forth his hand and caught him. If you will reach forth in 



THE WAY TO OBTAIN GOD'S FAVOUR. 145 

prayer for the pardon of your sins, the Lord Jesus Christ, 
by his Spirit, will come near and bless you. Begin now to 
pray Almighty God to have mercy upon you, to save you, 
or you perish. If you would only think what a dreadful 
thing it is to perish, you would not find it so hard to keep 
open your eyes and your ears, while you are talked to about 
the never dying soul. You would be as wide awake as you 
ever have been, when you have been looking upon pretty 
objects or hearing of strange sights. What makes you so 
thoughtless about eternal things, is, that you are asleep. 
You do not see in how great danger your souls are. If you 
did, you would begin, before you go away, to cry louder 
than Peter did, when the big waves were about to swallow 
him up, " Lord, save me, or I perish." 

There is another prayer, which you surely can remember, 
if you will give your mind to it. It is contained in two 
words, "Help, Lord." To whom shall we look for help 
but to God. We may sometimes be in a strait, and men 
can help us ; but out of the strait or narrow place in which 
we find ourselves by nature, no human being can give us 
real help. God only can do this. Call upon God for help. 
He can, by his Holy Spirit, help you to die. God, in great 
mercy and goodness, offers to help you ; and yet you will 
not accept it. How insulting is your language. I will 
not receive help from God. Thoughtless mortal, do you 
not know that your blessings come from God ? He has 
only to speak the word, and then, in a moment, your life is 
gone. then, pray the Lord to help you to overcome your 
sins, and all the evils which lie in your way to heaven. 
Here I have given you three very short prayers, which you 
must try to keep in mind. God be merciful to me a sinner. 
Lord, save or I perish. Help, Lord. You are now left 

13 



146 SERMON XI. 

without excuse, and if you do not now pray, it will be be- 
cause you do not wish to do your duty. 

How pained was my heart some months ago, as I stood 
by the bed of a coloured man, who, to all human appear- 
ance, was very near his end. I asked him if he was willing 
to die. He shook his head. I asked him if he tried to 
pray. He said, yes, sometimes, but was afraid he had put 
it off too long. I prayed with him, but till the last he was 
afraid to die. How unwilling he seemed to leave the world, 
I shall never forget. How did he look around, first to one 
and then another, asking them to raise him up. It would 
have grieved your inmost soul to see how reluctant he was 
to leave the world ; how, till the very last, he fought against 
death. 

To die without having the blessed Saviour to come near 
to your hearts by the power of his Spirit ; without the 
hope that you are going to a better world, that you are to 
be made like unto the angels, and sharers of the joys of 
heaven — what can be more fearful ? If you want to die 
in peace, you ought to seek the pardon of your sins before 
you leave this place. You ought to come to that Saviour 
whose love to you is stronger than death. 

Come to Christ, then; come confessing your sins. Re- 
member, he is willing and able to save, unto the utmost, all 
whr come to God through him. 

CM. 

could I find, from day to day, 

A nearness to my God ; 
Then should my hours glide sweet away, 

And lean upon his word. 

Lord, I desire with thee to live 
Anew from day to day ; 



THE WAY TO OBTAIN GOD'S FAVOUR. 147 

In joys the world can never give, 
Nor ever take away. 

O Jesus, come and rule my heart, 

And make me wholly thine, 
That I may never more depart, 

Nor grieve thy love divine. 

Thus, till my last expiring breath, 

Thy goodness I'll adore ; 
And when my flesh dissolves in death, 

My soul shall love thee more. 

Questions. — 1. Are sinners, while impenitent, in favour with God ? 
2. What must you do to get God's favour? 3. Will any find it who 
do not seek for it? 4. How must you seek it? 5. Through vhom 
must you seek it? 6. Where does God teach us his will? 7. Does 
the Bible give us any short prayers to use? 



SERMON XII. 

THE GREAT QUESTION. 

BY THE KEY. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

"What must I do to be sayed ? — Acts xvi. 30. . 

AYhile St. Paul was lying one night asleep on Ms bed, 
he saw a vision of a man, who spoke to him, and said, 
" Come over into Macedonia and help us." As soon as he 
awoke, he resolved to obey the call, and very soon set off 
on the journey. As he went along through that ignorant 
and heathen country, he came to a city called Philippi. 
There he remained some days to preach the unsearchable 
riches of Jesus Christ. When the Sabbath day came 
round, he went out upon the banks of a river on which the 
city stood, and joined with a small company of people who 
met there to pray. Among those who came to take part in 
that worship was a woman named Lydia. She invited Paul, 
and another disciple of Jesus, whose name was Silas, to go 
with her to her own house in the city, and remain there. 
There also they prayed. Just as they were going to prayer, 
a servant maid, who was possessed of an evil spirit, and who 
did many curious and cunning things, came where they were. 
She followed them about from place to place. She cried 
aloud, saying, " These men are the servants of the Most 
High God, which show unto us the way of salvation." For 
(148) 



THE GREAT QUESTION. 149 

several days did she continue this, and greatly troubled and 
grieved these men of God. At last St. Paul, wearied in 
patience, turned upon her, and commanded the evil spirit, 
in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her; and imme- 
diately he came out. Before this she had brought much 
gain to her masters by her cunning tricks and curious 
prophecies. She was, therefore, of no more value to them. 
This enraged her masters against these good men. They 
caught them, and dragged them before the magistrates. 
They charged them with troubling the peace of the city, 
and raised a great excitement against them. The magis- 
trates stormed in fury, and rent their clothes. They had 
them severely beaten, then shut up in prison, and loaded 
with chains. See now these servants of the Most High 
God, lying in their dungeon, bound hand and foot. They 
are strangers in a strange land ; without friends, without 
credit, without one to feel for them. Yet they do not 
complain. They even rejoice that they are worthy to 
suffer for Christ. They know that the Lord is on their 
side. 

But the prisoners are there locked safe in the strong 
walls. No one can come and let them loose. The officers 
think there is nothing more to fear. At last the sun goes 
down ; the noise and excitement of the city cease, and the 
people all go to their rest. Silence reigns over the city. 
The jailer sleeps soundly on his bed, with a sword resting 
by his side. The clock strikes twelve, but still he sleeps. 
Presently God stretches out his arm from on high. Sud- 
denly there is heard something like the crash and roar of 
distant thunder. The foundations of the prison are shaken ; 
the doors are thrown wide open, as if by some sweeping 
tempest ; the chains with which the prisoners are bound 

13* 




150 SERMON XII. 

fall from them, and they walk at liberty in their cell. It 
is an earthquake. The keeper of the prison, in terror, 
leaps from his bed, and is about to kill himself with the 
sword ; for he knew, if the prisoners escaped, he must die. 
But St. Paul saw him, and cried out, " Do thyself no harm, 
for we are all here." Then the keeper of the prison sprang 
forward, and fell trembling before these men, and said, 
" Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'' 

My unconverted friends, I wish to show you this day, 
why you should wake up from your careless sleep in sin, 
and cry out, " Sirs, what must we do to be saved?" You 
are in a far more dangerous state than the alarmed jailoi 
at Philippi. 

1st. You are unconverted. I do not mean by uncon- 
verted, that you are swearers, and drunkards, and dreadful 
sinners. I hope you have more respect for yourselves, 
your children, and your friends, than this. If there be 
any such here, may God speak to you this day with the 
voice of an earthquake. "When I say you are unconverted, 
I mean that you have not repented of sin ; that you have 
not chosen Christ by faith, as the Saviour of your soul ; 
that you lack that " one thing," — true religion, — without 
which you can never go to heaven. In this unconverted 
state you are under the condemnation of God. The Bible 
tells us that at death the unconverted will sink down into a 
burning pit. There are only two paths, in which we all 
tread as we travel to the eternal world. The one leads to 
heaven, and the other to hell. Every unconverted man 
among you is travelling in that path which leads to the 
unquenching fires. You go forward every hour. You do 
not stop a moment. Every step you take brings you nearer 
to the last and fatal step. Did any earthly danger, half as 



THE GREAT QUESTION. 151 

terrible as this, hang over jour head at this moment, no 
persuasi-on would be necessary to make you fly for your 
lives. Suppose some great and wise physician should come 
and stand where I do now, and say to you, in great alarm, 
that a dreadful pestilence, such as the cholera, was coming 
on like the wind. Suppose he should assure you that it 
would creep into every door and every bed, and bring 
down every man, woman, and child, to the grave. Would 
you not obey his warning at once, when he said, " Arise, 
and make your escape ?" Who would not fly for his life ? 
But you are in a more fearful state than this. God him- 
self has warned you that there is but a step between you 
and the devouring flames of his wrath. And yet you sleep 
on in sin as if you had no cause of alarm. You are just 
as indifferent about it as if it were an idle tale. Oh ! I be- 
seech you, by the terrors of the Lord, awake and cry out 
in your soul, " What must I do to be saved. 

2d. You must soon be cut off from all hope of being 
saved. 

Look around you in the world. Does not every object 
that meets your eye, say to you, " Thou shalt die ?" Does 
a day pass over your head that this truth does not sound in 
your ear? Where are the people that you used to meet 
and talk with when you were boys and girls ? How large 
a congregation would be here, if all you once knew and 
loved, but who now sleep in the dust, could be with us ! 
There would be no room in this house to hold them. It will 
soon be so with you all. Every one of us will, before long, 
join that great congregation of the dead. Like a mother 
who cannot bear to be parted from her children, the earth 
is constantly opening her bosom to receive us back again. 
And, oh, how frail and uncertain is life ! We know not 



152 SERMON XII. 

when death may come. We can tell the time for the going 
and returning of the seasons. We can tell when the wild 
goose, the pigeon, and the martin, will pass from us into 
other climes. We know when the leaf of the tree will bud 
forth, and when it will wither and fall. We know when 
the corn will shoot out of the earth, and when it will be 
gathered into the granary. But it is not so with death. 
" Man knoweth not its time." But this one thing we know 
— that you must die. We know that you are dying now. 
The moment you began to live, that moment you began to 
die. While I speak to you, I am dying. While you listen, 
you are dying. The very breath you now draw, to make 
your life longer, shortens it. Every hour you live and 
labour to fix yourself firmer in the world, brings you nearer 
to the grave. Every sound you hear, every sight you see, 
tells you that death is near. Why will you not consider 
this ? You may shut your eyes against the solemn fact ; 
but this will not keep it off. You may try to drive out the 
thought of it from your minds, but the very attempt will 
but bring it the nearer. Oh ! remember that nothing but 
a thin wall of flesh stands between your soul and the burn- 
ing pit. A thousand things are every day taking place 
around you to break through this wall. You do not take a 
step in life, nor eat a morsel of food, nor draw a single 
breath, which might* not, if God please, cause your death. 
You have heard of the volcanoes, or burning mountains, in 
South America. Some men were once travelling through 
that country to see what sort of a land it is. They saw 
some of these mountains burning out at the top, just as 
if the fires of the eternal pit had overflowed, and were 
boiling up and belching out their flames and brimstone. 
Of course, they did not go near to them. One day they 






THE GREAT QUESTION. 153 

climbed to the top of a very high mountain, which had 
once burned in the same way. But it did not seem to be 
burning then, and had not burned for many years. They 
found there a great chasm, or pit, more than a hundred 
yards across, and more than a mile deep. One of these 
men was anxious to see how it looked far down in the 
cavern, and also to know how deep it was. He was a brave 
and daring man. So he persuaded the others to fasten a 
rope round his body, and let him down as far as they could 
into the dreadful chasm. They all trembled and shuddered 
at the very thought. But they did it. While he was there 
dangling at the end of the rope, between heaven and hell, 
he looked back to the top to see how far he had gone down. 
And what do you thhink he saw ? He saw that the rope 
had worn almost in two, and that he was hanging, as it 
were, by a single thread. He looked below, and far down 
beyond the reach of sight was the horrible chasm, black as 
midnight and fearful as hell. He gave signs to his friends 
above to draw him up. Every attempt but wore the rope 
more. They did all they could, but, alas for the poor man ! 
it was too late. The rope continued to wear against the 
rocks. He watched it as thread after thread snapped. A 
thousand times did he ask himself, " What must I do to 
be saved ?" He would have given worlds to have been safe 
at the top. See him there, unconverted sinner, hanging by 
that single thread. Hear him curse his own folly. Listen to 
his cries for help. He shuts his eyes against the danger. 
He tries to make himself believe that the rope may not 
break. But this does not save him. No power on earth 
can save him. Look at this poor man. Tell me, who is 
he ? Unconverted sinner, this is you, hanging, by a single 
thread, over the burning, bottomless pit of hell. Let but 



154 SERMON XII. 

the iron hand of death snap that thread in sunder, and 
you are gone, never more to see the face of a friend, never 
more to hear the voice of mercy, never more to ask, " What 
must I do to he saved?" Oh ! dying sinner, lift up your 
heart to Jesus now, before you leave these seats, and cry 
out to him, in the bitterness of your soul, " What must I 
do to be saved?" 

3d. Whenjou come to stand before God in judgment, it 
will be too late to ask, "What must I do to be saved?" 
The bed of death, and the throne of God, are not the 
places for doing what is necessary to save you. It is nc 
time for a man to begin to plough and sow his fields when 
the harvest has come. It is no time to begin a day's jour- 
ney when the night has set in. It is no time to send for 
the physician when the chills and spasms of death are on 
you. It is no time to spring to your doors to lock them 
when the enemy has broken in, and stands over you with a 
sword pointed at your heart. So it will be too late to do 
the work of salvation when you are in the arms of death, 
or at the bar of God. It is easy to put off the work of 
salvation from youth to manhood, and from manhood to old 
age. It is easy to go on promising from year to year. 
But some of these days the time will come when it will be 
too late. It is not so easy to repent of sin when excited 
with fever, or sinking with sickness. The work is not so 
light and trifling that it can be done any moment you 
please. Even if there are some cases when men may re- 
pent and be saved, in the hour of death, it may not be so 
in your case, you ought not to run the dreadful risk. You 
may not be in your right mind in the hour of death. A 
minister of the gospel told me that he was once sent for to 
see a young man who was thought to be dying. He found 



THE GREAT QUESTION. 155 

nim triumphing in the hope of glory. He seemed to be 
perfectly willing and ready to die, though he had never 
before been a professing Christian. Ther3 was another 
minister of Jesus Christ with him, and they both rejoiced 
with the dying young man in his assurance of hope. His 
parents and friends all watched round his bedside with 
mingled delight and grief, ready to give him back to God. 
The ministers took leave of him, expecting that, before the 
rising of the next sun, he would be in heaven. But not 
hearing of his death, the gentleman who related this to 
me went back in a day or two. To his surprise he found 
the young man greatly improved. But not a word did 
he say about Jesus and heaven. At last the minister 
reminded him of his joyful hopes in the prospect of death. 
What do you think was the reply of the young man ? 
Said he, " I do not remember any thing about it, sir. I 
have never known any thing of the hopes of a Christian. 
I never expressed any such hopes. " How are we to ac- 
count for this ? Simply by the fact that the young man 
was out of his right mind, when he was thought to be 
dying His joyous hopes, his triumphs, were nothing 
more than the excitement ^ fever and delirium. Uncon- 
verted sinner, it may be so with you. The work of salva- 
tion is too important, too solemn, to be put off until death, 
to be then forced and hurried through. 

A man who had reached a good old age, and was much 
loved by all who knew him, was laid upon the bed of death. 
He thought in his heart, " how dreadful it is to go into the 
presence of God to be tried for my soul !" He was alarmed 
by the thought. He aent for his pastor. As soon as he 
went into his room, he said to him, "Why have you not 
told me of my guilt and danger?" The pastor answered, 



156 SERMON XII. 

"I have preached to you many a sermon. I have warned 
you of approaching death. I have told you of hell, and 
of heaven, and what you must do to be saved." "Oh, 
yes," said the awakened, but dying sinner, "but I always 
thought you were preaching to others." "I see now that 
I was the man ; and now it is too late. I am sinking under 
a load of guilt. I have spent more than fifty years in 
neglecting and hating God. I used to think I was ready 
to die ; but I did not see how wicked I was. Now I see it 
too late. Oh ! if I could live only one week ! only one 
week ! That is all I ask. I would spend every moment 
of it in work to save my soul. But it is too late. I cannot. 
I -am dying." Yes, it was too late. He asked what he 
should do to be saved ; but it was too late. His pastor 
prayed for him ; but it was too late. He directed him to 
Christ ; but it was too late. The ghastly stare of death sat 
upon his countenance. The brittle thread of life broke, and 
his soul hurried away, without hope and peace, to the 
judgment bar, to settle its accounts with God for eternity. 
Now, my unconverted hearers, whom are these warnings 
intended for ? For the bold blasphemer ? For the igno- 
rant heathen ? For some dreadfully wicked man you know ? 
For the prisoner about to die on the gallows ? For none 
but such as these ? I tell you, in God's name, they are 
intended for you. They call you to wake up from your 
sleep of sin ; to think of your danger in God'3 sight ; to 
think of the thousands who are daily dying ; to remember 
how short your day of grace is, and how uncertain the 
hour of your death, and how unfit a time that is to work 
the work of salvation. When you go away from this place, 
remember that you may never see the light of another Sab- 
bath day ; never hear the sound of another sermon ; never 



THE GREAT QUESTION. 157 

look upon another Christian congregation listening to the 
preaching of God's word ; never have another opportunity 
of falling on your knees, and saying, " Lord Jesus, what 
must I do to be saved?" 

CM. 

" "What must I do," the jailer cries, 

" To save my sinking soul ?" 
" Believe in Christ," the word replies, 

" Thy faith shall make thee whole." 

Our works are all the works of sin, 

Our nature quite depraved ; 
Jesus alone can make us clean ; 

By grace are sinners saved. 

Come, sinners, then, the Saviour trust, 

To wash you in his blood ; 
To change your hearts, subdue your lust, 

And bring you home to God. 

Questions. — 1. What did St. Paul dream as he was asleep one 
night? 2. Did he go over into Macedonia? 3. What did he do 
there ? 4. What did the people do to him ? 5. What happened when 
he was in prison? 6. What great question did the jailer ask him? 

7. What is the first reason why we should ask the same question ? 

8. What the second ? 9. What the third ? 10. When should we ask 
this question ? 11. Why should we ask it now ? 



14 



SERMON XIII. 

WHAT THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. 

Acts xvi. 31. 

Whatever St. Paul undertook he did with all his might. 
No man ever preached the gospel more earnestly than he 
did. When he went to the city of Philippi, he told the 
people so plainly of their sins, and preached the doctrines 
of Jesus Christ with so much zeal and boldness, that thev 
got into a perfect fury of madness against him. They 
rushed upon him, and dragged him off to prison, and bound 
him down to the floor with chains. But his holy Master, 
Jesus, who was always present with him, would not stand 
quietly by and see him sb shamefully treated. You know 
he had said in one cf his sermons, that he came into the 
world to "release the prisoners." See him now doing this 
in the case of St. Paul. He does not slip slily into the 
prison, and take off his chains and lead him softly out, so 
that no one can hear or see him, and then tell him to make 
his escape and never show his face there again. No ; he 
takes a different plan. He breaks the silence of midnight 
by the loud roar of an earthquake. He shakes off the 

ass) : 



WHAT THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE. 159 

chains from the hands and feet of his apostle. He wakes 
up the jailer, that he may know what is going on. Hear- 
ing and seeing all these things, the jailer was greatly 
alarmed, and ran and fell down before the apostle, and 
asked, " Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" St. Paul did 
not ask him whether he was much alarmed, or whether he 
felt very deeply his guilt for sin, or whether he was under 
very deep conviction. But he instantly answered him, in 
the words of the text, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, 
and thou shalt be saved." 

I want to tell you to-day, as well as I can, what it is to 
believe. Faith is a great and precious thing. Without it 
no one can be a true Christian. The Bible tells us that 
we are "justified by faith ;" that " we walk by faith ;" that 
we live by faith ; that we are saved by faith ; that " with- 
out faith it is impossible to please God." A great many 
people think, that, because faith is so great a thing, no one 
can understand or enjoy it, unless God send it down, in 
some curious and startling manner, from heaven, into their 
hearts. But this is not true. There is nothing so strange 
or mysterious in faith. It belongs to the very nature of 
every child and of every man. All of us see something 
of it in almost every thing around us. We practice it 
almost every day of our lives. You see it shining in all 
the scenes of business, pleasure, and' duty, in which men 
engage every day. 

Not long ago I passed the plantation of a rich farmer. 
His land stretched far on both sides of the long lane, and 
many hands were busy at work in the field. Some were 
ploughing, some sowing, some harrowing. It was the fall 
season, and a keen, brisk wind was cutting round my ears. 
As I looked over the broad, big fields, I said to myself, 



160 SERMON XIII. 

what an immense amount of work these people are doing ! 
why are they willing to go to so much expense on such an 
uncertainty. The wheat they are sowing must be here in 
all the cold and freezing of winter, and may be killed. Or, 
if it is not, in the spring time the frost may nip it, or it 
may be attacked by the fly. Or, if it escapes these, the 
heavens may shut up their windows and refuse to give rain, 
or they may pour out their waters too abundantly, and 
blast the grain in the head. How do these men know, 
thought I, that one or all of these things will not happen 
to their crops? As these thoughts were passing in my 
mind, an old man, whose curling hair was powdered over 
with the frosts of more than fifty winters, came riding up 
towards the fence along the road. He was swinging his 
arm with an air of independent carelessness, and scattering 
the golden grain many yards around him. I said to him, 
" Good morning, my uncle ; are you not afraid you may 
have all this labour for nothing ?" "Why so, sir ?" said he, 
lifting his broad-brimmed hat, and showing that he had long 
since learned true Christian politeness. I told him all I had 
been thinking about the dangers that might happen to his 
crop. I shall never forget his answer. " Oh, no, sir," 
said he, a we are not afraid of that; we must do this work 
in faith, sir ; we cannot make the wheat sprout. But we 
can plough, and sow, and do our part, and leave the rest to 
God. We believe that he will protect it through the win- 
ter, and rain upon it in the spring, and ripen it with sun- 
shine in the summer, and give us a good harvest. It is this 
belief which makes us do the work. For more than forty 
years I have lived and worked on this farm in this belief, 
and God has never yet failed us ; he always gives us some 
crop." This old man taught me a good and useful lesson. 



WHAT THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE. 161 

I bid him good morning, and rode on my way. As I went 
on I thought to myself, well, what this old man says is true 
in nearly every thing. What is it that keeps all the ma- 
chinery of business and society going ? It is faith. What 
is it that binds every family together in love. It is faith. 
They have confidence in each other. What is it that makes 
the merchant sell his goods on credit, and charge them on 
his books. It is faith. He has confidence in his debtors. 
What is it that enables the lawyer to plead his cause in 
earnestness. It is faith. He believes what the witnesses 
have told. What helps the judge and the jury to decide, 
even in cases of life and death ? It is faith. They be- 
lieve the evidence before them. What makes the physician 
give strong and sickening medicines in dangerous illness ? 
It is faith. He believes the medicine will have the effect 
he wishes. What is it that makes the sick man take these 
medicines ? It is faith. He believes in the skill and kind- 
ness of the physician. Do you not see, my friends, that 
this is so in every thing of this kind ? All you do, you do 
in faith. If it was not for this faith, there could be no hap- 
piness in the world. Take this faith away from the world, 
and you make men the eternal enemies of each other. You 
set brother at war against brother. You dry up every 
fountain of business and of pleasure. You make men 
more vicious and blood thirsty than the hungry tiger of the 
forest. You see, then, that faith is not so hard to under- 
stand as many persons think. It is not that dark and 
mysterious thing that Satan would like to make you believe. 
But you want to know whether this is a Christian, saving 
faith, whether this is all that is meant by the faith spoken 
of in the Bible. You want to know whether this is all that 
St. Paul meant, when he said to the jailer at Philippi, 

14* 



162 sermon xni. 

" Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." 
Hear me attentively, and I will try and tell you what you 
must believe before you can be saved. The faith you must 
have as a Christian is this very same confidence or belief I 
have been speaking of, exercised towards God. You must 
believe what he says in his word ; you must have confidence 
in what he tells you about yourself as sinners, and about 
Jesus Christ as your Saviour. You must believe that what 
he has promised he will fulfil, and what he has threatened 
shall come to pass. You must deal with God with the same 
confidence that you deal with each other. And what does 
Jesus Christ tell you ? 

1st. He tells you that you are condemned and wretched 
sinners. 

You must believe this, or you can never .be willing to go 
to Jesus and beg his forgiveness and mercy. A good and 
rich man once had an only son. He was very wicked ; he 
would not obey his father's laws, or own his authority ; but 
did all he could to disgrace him and to destroy his happi- 
ness. At last he collected a few of his clothes together, 
and ran off from his father's house. He crossed the wide 
sea, and went off as a wanderer into a far distant land. 
There he was seized upon by strangers, blindfolded, and 
bound with a rope, his hands fastened tightly behind him, 
and hurried away from one market to another, until he 
could not tell where he was, or how he should ever get 
back. In this state he was forced to the hardest and lowest 
service. By day he was driven every hour under the lash ; 
at night he was bound in chains, and allowed just enough 
of the coarsest food to keep him alive and able to go along. 
What a wretched condition was he in ! But whose fault 
was it ? Who will say that he did not deserve it all. In 



WHAT THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE. 163 

his father's house he had been nursed in the lap of ease 
and plenty. All that his heart could wish for was his. Had 
he kept his father's laws, and honoured and obeyed him, he 
might have shared his estate, and lived in perfect happiness. 
But what claim has he upon him now ? Who could blame 
his father if he should never think of him again — if he 
should choose to leave him in that wretched condition — to 
die in slavery — without a friend to soothe his dying agonies, 
or to drop a tear over his lonely grave ? What right would 
that son have to complain if his father had forgotten him 
in this way ? He had wickedly left his father. He had 
not loved him, nor cared whether he was happy or miser- 
able. Must not that father have been displeased with his 
son ? Even if he could now return to his home, he could 
never be happy in his favour as he was in his childhood, 
unless he was changed in heart, and made a better man. 
But, until he sees that he has wronged and injured that 
father, that he is now very unhappy, and poor and wretched, 
he will never even want to go back to him. If he does not 
feel this he will never make one struggle to get free from 
his iron-hearted tyrants. 

In every sinner I look upon, I see this wicked and rebel- 
lious son. God is your Father. Heaven is your home. 
But you have cast off his authority ; you have broken his 
laws ; you have turned away from him ; you will not let 
him reign over you. Of you he says, " I have nourished 
and brought up children, and they have rebelled against 
me." Satan has made you his slaves. He has loaded you 
with the heavy irons of sin. See how they hang about 
your neck, and heart, and hands, and feet. Oh ! how 
much sorrow do they give you ! How much labour do they 
lay upon you ! What hardships do they force you to bear ! 



164 sermon xin. 

"What fears do they awaken in your hearts ! What tears 
of trouble do they make you weep ! "What death do they 
bring you to ! "What torment do they threaten you with ! 
You are without God and without hope. You are in a far 
more wretched condition than the enslaved son I have 
spoken of. You have no claim upon the mercy and grace 
of God. You have broken his laws, and will not have him 
as your Father. He is angry with you. His curse hangs 
over you. His sentence of death and eternal torment is 
given out against you. Every moment of your life you 
are in danger of sinking and perishing under it. Now you 
must believe all this, or you will never wish to go back to 
God and beg his mercy. "When Jesus says that you are 
condemned already, that you shall go away into everlast- 
ing punishment, that if you believe not you shall be 
damned, that if you believe not in him you shall die in 
your sins, you must believe it ; you must have confidence 
or faith in what he says. If you do not, you can never 
feel what a wretched, undone sinner you are ; you can 
never see that you are in the hands of Satan, and that you 
have no power to save yourself from the damnation of hell. 

2. Jesus Christ tells you that he came into the world to 
save sinners. 

YoU must believe this. Feeling that you are a wretched 
sinner, you must believe that he came to save you. I have 
just told you of a wicked young man who went off from 
his father's house, and was bound in chains as a slave. 
Many years passed away before the father ever heard what 
had become of that son. At last a traveller, who had 
crossed the seas, and visited almost every country, came 
and told the aged and care-worn father of the unhappy 
condition of his son. The good old man was moved with 



WHAT THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE. 165 

such compassion and love for his son, that he sold all he 
had, and sent out a man, with a ship loaded with precious 
things, to buy back his son, and bring him to his home 
again. The winds of heaven, and the waves of the sea 
bore away the ship to that far-off land. The messenger 
pushed onward, across burning sands, and over rocky 
mountains. After many dangers by sea, and hardships by 
land, he overtook a company of wanderers in the midst of 
a broad and burning sandy desert. He saw among them 
one loaded with irons, dragging his weary way, poor, friend- 
less, downcast, and miserably reduced. He was this wicked 
and unhappy son whom he was seeking. He at once 
offered an immense sum of money to his masters if they 
would give him his pardon and let him go back to his 
father. But they rejected the offer and laughed at him. 
No amount of money could purchase him. Then, moved 
with pity, which we cannot describe, this messenger offered 
to take the place of the wretched son, to wear his chains, 
never again to see the face of his friends, or enjoy the plea- 
sures of home ; to do and suffer all they might put upon him, 
and, if necessary, to die, if they would let their prisoner go 
back to his father. This they all agreed to, and the bargain 
was sealed. The enslaved wanderer was told of all that had 
been done. The messenger went to him in person ; told 
him of his sin against his father, of his readiness to receive 
him again, of the great price he had offered for his liberty, 
and that, if he would now accept the terms, his chains 
should be taken, off, he should be free from his tyrant mas- 
ters, he should go back to his father and beg his forgive- 
ness, and that he would provide all the means for his safe 
return. Now what must this wretched young man do in 
order to get free ? Why, he must believe that this messenger 



166 SERMON XIII. 

was really sent to him from his father ; that he came on an 
errand of mercy and love to him. He must believe what 
he tells him. He must be willing to let him take his place. 
He must agree to all the terms and conditions on which he 
has bought him. If he will not do this, the messenger can- 
not save him from his misery. If he will not accept this, 
who but the man himself is to be blamed if he should drag 
out his days in bondage and die in friendlessness and 
poverty ? 

Poor wandering sinner ! what do you see, in this unhappy 
son, but yourself? And whom do you see in this kind mes- 
senger but our blessed Lord Jesus Christ ? See him coming 
near to you while you are bound in sin. Hear him making the 
bargain for your life and salvation. Look at him wearing 
your chains, suffering, bleeding, dying in your stead. Listen 
to him speaking to you in heavenly affection. Believe on 
the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." "Who- 
soever believeth on me shall not perish, but have everlast- 
ing life." Can you not believe what he says? There is 
nothing hard in it, nothing which you cannot understand. 
You can readily believe that Jesus died for sinners, and 
that all who trust in him shall be saved. You know what 
is meant when a man tells you that he will trust in 
you. This is nothing more than to say, " I have faith in 
you; I rely upon you; I have confidence in you." St. 
Paul said, " I know in whom I have believed, and am per- 
suaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed 
unto him." These all mean faith. It is to trust all to 
Christ, to give up your heart's confidence to him. A poor 
sin-stricken Indian was once listening to the preaching of a 
faithful missionary. He was speaking of the love of Jesus 
in dying for sinners, and of the trust that sinners ought to 



/ 



WHAT THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE. 167 

put in him. The Indian at last arose from his seat, threw 
back his blanket from his shoulders, and walked up to the 
missionary. His hard, weather-beaten cheeks were bathed 
in tears, and, with a voice half choked, he said to the mis- 
sionary, "I give to Jesus my rifle and my dog." The mis- 
sionary answered, " Jesus does not want your rifle or your 
dog." The Indian said again, " I give to Jesus my blanket 
and my feathers." The answer was, "Jesus can make no 
use of them." The poor Indian, perplexed and dispirited, 
looked down to the ground for a moment, the big tears 
rolling from his cheeks. Presently he looked up, and said 
again, "Poor Indian has nothing else. White man take 
away all his cattle, and horses, and land. Wish me had 
some to give. But me got nothing but myself. Me give to 
Jesus myself to serve him as long as me live." Here, then, 
is an example of simple trust in Christ. This poor Indian 
was ready to do and to be any thing for Christ. He felt 
that he was a wretched sinner. He believed the word of 
Jesus, that he came to save sinners. He wanted to do 
something to show his gratitude for so great love. He gave 
himself up to his service, to continue faithful in it until 
death. This was the faith which saves the soul. This is 
the faith of which St. Paul speaks, when he says, " Believe 
on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." Go 
and do likewise, and you shall be saved. 

L. M. 

The smitten heart and starting tear, 
Which bade me live for God and heaven, 

Have sometimes roused my solemn fear, 
And made me wish my sins forgiven. 

But when I mingled with the crowd 
That hasten to the world of wo, 



168 SERMON XIII. 

I felt too stubborn and too proud 

To yield to Chris|, and heavenward go. 

And thus I've gone from day to day, 

From month to month, and year to year, 

Refusing still to bend and pray, 
And shed the penitential tear. 

But I'm resolved no longer now 
To put away the day of grace ; 

Lest God in anger strike the blow, 
And make despair my dwelling place. 






Questions. — 1. "What answer did St. Paul give to the jailer, when 
he asked him what he must do to be saved ? 2. What is it to believe 
on the Lord Jesus Christ? 3. How did the old man sowing wheat 
show his faith? 4. What must you believe about your own con- 
demnation? 5. What must you believe about Jesus Christ as a 
Saviour ? 6. What did Jesus Christ do to save sinners ? 7. What 
does Jesus promise if you will believe on him ? 8. How did the 
poor Indian show his faith? 



SERMON XIV. 

THE REJOICING JAILER; OR, THE SINNER 
TAUGHT HOW TO BELIEVE. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

He rejoiced, believing in God. — Acts xvi. 34. 

No sooner did the jailer at Philippi learn that he was a 
guilty and condemned sinner, than he began to think 
whether he could be saved. He did not lie still in his bed, 
and merely think over the matter. When he fell Sown be- 
fore the Apostle, he did not ask, " How did I happen to be 
such a sinner?" It was enough for him to know that the 
curse of God was resting on him. He wants now to know 
what he must do to be saved from that curse. He proves, 
by his conduct, that he is in earnest. For all he knew, the 
earthquake might have shaken off the chains from every 
prisoner in the jail. It was at midnight, and they might 
easily have made their escape. Yet he does not seem to 
have been troubled about this. All his thoughts are given 
now to that one question, "What must I do to be saved?" 
See how he listens to the Apostle's sermon. The doctrines 
were new to him. But he did not begin to dispute them ; 
he did not say, " I cannot see the reason of this or that 
thing." He had learned that he was a sinner, condemned, 

15 (169) 



170 SERMON XIV. 

wretched; and, if saved, must be saved in the way that 
God, in mercy, might offer. In this way he was willing to 
be saved. He believed what the Apostle preached. He 
saw that this was the best way ; he accepted it, and "re- 
joiced, believing in God." 

Many persons say they would like to be Christians, lik 
to go to heaven ; but they will not do as this jailer did. 
They talk much about religion, tell what they think faith 
is, and how soon they would join the church if they could 
only feel and rejoice as they want to. And yet they will 
not take God at his word when he says, " Believe on the 
Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." A man, 
while asleep, once fell from the deck of a vessel, as it was 
moving with the speed of the wind across the ocean. It 
was not long before he was missed by the crew. Men were 
sent out, in the small boat, in search of him. They saw 
him, at last, clinging to a piece of broken plank, and 
struggling in the strong waves. They were soon by his 
side. He was weak, and almost worn down. They 
stretched out their arms to draw him into their boat. 
What would you think of this man if I should tell you that 
he looked up at them with indifference, drew back from 
them, and asked, " How did I come here ?" They answered, 
" We have no time to talk about that now ; take hold of 
our hands and we will save you." Again he says, " If you 
will tell me how I came in this dangerous situation — if you 
can tell me whether I am alarmed enough, or weak enough, 
or anxious enough to get back to the vessel — if you will 
satisfy my mind on these points, then I will agree to be 
helped into your boat*. If you cannot explain these things 
to me I must cling to my plank, and go wherever the 
angry waves may dash me." Do you not say tLat this 



: 



THE SINNER TAUGHT HOW TO BELIEVE. 171 

man was either a madman, or that he had no sense of his 
danger, and did not want to be saved ? But how many 
sinners act just in this way ? Did you never hear them say 
how anxious they are to be saved ? I have often heard 
them say, " Oh, we are great sinners ; we are trying, every 
way we can to be saved ; we are afraid it will soon be too 
late, and that we shall sink beneath the waves of God's 
wrath to rise no more. Do tell us what we must do to be 
saved." And then, when they are told, "Believe on the 
Lord Jesus Christ," — instead of believing, they begin to 
ask questions about things of little or no concern ; things 
which, if they knew, could not help them one inch in the 
way to heaven. This is the way that many persons put off 
believing in Jesus, and joining the church, until they be~ 
come cold in religion, hardened in sin, and die without 
hope. Had the jailer at Philippi acted this way, he would 
never have rejoiced. Nor will you ever " rejoice, believing 
in God, until you are made willing by the Holy Ghost, as 
he was, to be saved in any way, and on any terms, that 
God, in his great mercy, may offer to you 

If you will fix your mind on what I am saying, I will try 
to teach you, as well as I can, how to "believe o* tiie Lord 
Jesus Christ." 

1st. You must accept his offer to save you. A happy 
people once had a great and generous king as their ruler. 
His laws were good, and most of the people loved him. 
But in one distant corner of the kingdom the people hated 
him. Two thousand of them took up arms against him. 
They appointed a particular day, and marched off, in a 
body, to drive him from his throne and to take his life. 
One of the king's laws was, that, if any one ventured to 
take up arms against him, he should be put to death. He 



172 SERMON XIV. 

had a great and powerful army at his command, and he 
ordered his officers to take a body of soldiers and go and 
conquer the rebels, and chain them down in prison. The 
order was strictly obeyed, and the king appointed a certain 
day for them all to be beheaded. There they are now, shut 
up in the dungeon, and the king is safe in his palace. He 
has their lives in his hands. He was a good and forgiving 
man. His heart was moved with pity for them. He 
thought, " How can I destroy all these people ?" He felt 
that he would like to pardon them. He had an only son, 
whom he loved as himself. Him he sent to them with a 
message of mercy. Now watch this son, as he quits all the 
honours and splendours of his father's palace, and goes to 
these rebels in the dark and dreary prison. Hear with 
what tender compassion he tells them of their crime, and 
warns them of their danger. He says to them, your guilt 
is of the darkest and deepest stain in my father's eyes. 
He has declared that in ten days you shall all be put to 
death. You are now condemned. But he can yet save 
you ; he wishes to show you mercy. He has sent me to 
tell you, that if you are truly sorry for what you have done, 
if you will solemnly promise to love him hereafter, never 
to take up arms against him, but to be good and faithful 
subjects the remainder of your lives, and will beg for his 
mercy, I will be your security ; I will plead with him in 
your behalf; he will set you free, and let you enjoy your 
liberties, and go back to your families again. All who will 
make these promises, and beg for this mercy before the day 
of execution, shall be saved. All who will not shall then 
be put to death. Now, my friends, suppose you were these 
condemned prisoners, tell me, what would you have done ? 
Why, you would at once have accepted his offer to spare 



THE SINNER TAUGHT HOW TO BELIEVE. 173 

you. You would have believed the message of the son. 
You would have said, " We will go to the king and confess 
our crimes, and pray for his mercy, and tell him that we 
will give his own son as security for our faithfulness." 
This would be to believe in God, to believe on the Lord 
Jesus Christ. And would you not then rejoice ? Yes, if 
you had confidence in the son, and confidence in the king's 
power; if you felt your guilt, and saw your danger; 
if you were anxious to be saved, you would, just like the 
Philippian jailer, "rejoice, believing." 

Poor condemned sinners, you are these rebel prisoners. 
God is this good king. He says, " As I live, I have no plea- 
sure in the death of the wicked ; but that the wicked turn from 
his way and live." This son is that suffering and bleeding 
Saviour who died for you on the cross. He says, " He that 
believeth in me shall never die." " Him that cometh to 
me I will in no wise cast out." And can you not trust 
what he says ? Can you not believe that he speaks the 
truth? If you can, why may you not rejoice as did the 
jailer ? Though you may know that you ought to die, yet, 
if you trust in the truth of his word — if you agree to be 
saved on his terms — if you heartily accept those terms — 
there is no reason why you should not rejoice. For this 
would be to have faith in Jesus Christ ; to believe on the 
Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, it is not your tears, or deep 
feeling, or sorrow, or conviction, or fear, that saves you. 
You may feel all these ten thousand times deeper than you 
do, but they can never save you. It is Jesus Christ alone 
who saves you. And if you will not accept his offer of 
salvation, even he cannot save you. Suppose these men in 
prison had said, " We would like to be saved, but the king 
is a great man ; his armed guards are around him, and the 

15* 



174 SEKMON XIV. 

moment we attempt to go to Mm, he may have us shot 
down." Would their mere sorrow, or crying, or anxiety 
for pardon, save them? Certainly not. They must ac- 
cept the king's offer, and go to him, begging for mercy. 
They must trust his promise. They must do this soon, or 
the time of mercy will pass away, and then they will de- 
serve to die twice over — not only for their attempt to kill 
the king, but for their unbelief of the king's promise. 
Dear, dying sinner, do you not deserve this, if you will not 
accept the offer of Jesus Christ to save you? What do you 
need to be saved, but to "believe," in this way, " on the 
Lord Jesus Christ ?" Do this, and then we may say of 
you, "by grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not 
of yourselves; it is the gift of God." 

2d. To believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is to trust him 
alone to save you. I knew a young man who was very 
anxious to be a sincere .Christian. He was my friend, and 
told me all his heart. For a long time he was greatly dis- 
tressed because his faith was not so clear, nor his hope so 
strong as he wished them to be. Often he would go out 
into the dark and solemn woods at midnight, to pray. He 
seldom ever smiled, or seemed to find pleasure in company. 
On Sunday he would shut himself up in his room, and read 
his Bible all day, and pray that he might be a happy Chris- 
tian. But he seemed never to "rejoice, believing." Some- 
times he would say, " Oh ! how I should like to be a mem- 
ber of the church — to go to the communion — 'to sing and 
rejoice with God's people ; but I can never do this until I 
am a better man, and more worthy of these privileges. 
One day I said to him, " My dear friend, you will never be 
a happy Christian in this way. You are trying to save 
yourself. You are trusting to your deep feelings, your 



_ 



THE SINNER TAUGHT HOW TO BELIEVE. 175 

prayers, your distress, your reading of the Bible, and other 
such things, as your Saviour." But heJooked at me and 
said, " No, I am not ; I only think every man ought to be 
a really converted Christian before he makes a profession 
of religion." Not long after this, we went to hear a plain 
and sensible preacher. It was on Sunday night. We sat 
together in the same pew. In the sermon the preacher de- 
scribed exactly the case of my distressed friend. I do not 
remember his words, but I will give you one of his ideas. 
"A man," said the preacher, "is crossing in a boat, just 
above the dreadful falls of Niagara. Before he knows it, 
he is drawn far down towards the falls. To escape is im- 
possible. Friends on the shore are watching him with 
breathless anxiety. Now and then the mournful cry is 
heard from the crowd, ' He is gone ; he is lost ; no human 
power can save him.' Others are cheering him on, and 
saying, 'Work hard and quick with your oars.' He is 
straining every muscle and sinew in his body to reach the 
shore. But the waves, in their giant strength, bear him 
down to the thundering cataract. Still he works with his 
oar, and the people cry out, 'Don't give up.' But, ex- 
hausted and faint, he is about to give up in despair. He 
finds that he has no power to save himself. He looks away, 
to see if there is any other help for him. And behold, the 
end of a rope is thrown, by a friend, from the top of a high 
tree. It falls on the very sides of the boat, as it dashes, 
like a race horse, to the precipice. Look at him now. He 
casts down the oars ; he seizes, with both hands, the rope. 
The people now cry out, ' Cling to the rope V He seats* 
himself quietly in his boat, and hugs the rope tight to his 
heart. He has given up his desperate struggle to save him- 
self, and now trusts entirely to the power and faithfulness 



176 SERMON XIV. 

of his friend in the tree to draw him to the shore." Here 
the preacher paused a moment, and my friend grasped me 
by the hand, and said, " I am that man in the boat ; like 
him I have been making a desperate straggle to save my- 
self ; Jesus is the rope thrown out to me. I will lay hold 
on him, and he shall draw me safe to heaven. Oh, that I 
should have been so blind as not to see that it was not my 
doing so much, but my yielding at once to Christ ; my trust- 
ing entirely to him, that was to save me. From that day 
my unhappy friend became a rejoicing Christian. He soon 
•joined the church, and is now a zealous and useful minister 
of the gospel. If you would be saved, you must, in the 
same way, put all your trust in Jesus. This is the faith 
which saves you when all things else fail. 

3d. To believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is to do his will. 
It is to "work out your own salvation with fear and 
trembling." You will call this a strange doctrine when 
you remember that I have just told you that you cannot 
save yourself. You will ask, " why then must I do God's 
will, and work out my salvation?" "Why may I not sit 
still and wait God's pleasure to save me?" Suppose the 
man who was about to be driven over the falls had talked 
so. Suppose, when he threw down the oars, he had said, 
" The rope is by my side, I will sit here at ease, and let it 
save me?" What would have become of him? He had 
just as well have stuck to his oars. Before he could be 
saved he had to grasp the rope ; he had to wind it tightly 
round his hands ; he had to cling to it, and to brace his 
feet firmly against the current. So you must show your 
trust in Christ by doing his will. You must, by prayer 
and communion with him, cling to him. You must turn your 
feet firmly against the strong current of temptation and 



THE SINNER TAUGHT HOW TO BELIEVE. 177 

sin. You must bear up against them, and yet trust all to 
Christ to carry you safely through them. Had the man 
on the river yielded to the current, his boat could never 
have been drawn safely to shore. So, if you yield to 
temptation and sin, you can never be saved in heaven. 
God does not draw any to him who live unholy lives. He 
must see that your heart and hands are firmly fixed against 
sin ; that you are seeking to be holy, to abound in good 
works. If your faith does not make you do God's will, it 
will be worth nothing to you. Two gentleman were once 
crossing a rapid and dangerous stream in a small boat. 
They were disputing about faith and works. One said that 
"We are saved by faith only ;" the other said, "Not so; 
we are saved by works." When their argument had grown 
warm, the old ferryman, who sat with an oar in each hand, 
pulling rapidly across the river, said to them, " Gentlemen, 
you are both wrong. Do you see these oars ? I will call 
one of them faith, and the other works." So the old man 
laid down "works" and began to pull with " faith" The 
boat turned round and round, but did not go forward. He 
then laid down " faith" and took up " works." The boat 
then turned in an opposite direction. At last the gentle- 
men, seeing that the current was bearing them far down 
the stream, and that they made no headway towards the 
shore, said to him, " Oh, take both oars, and carry us 
across." "Yes," said the ferryman, "and so it is with 
faith and works. If you wish to get safely over the dan- 
gerous sea of life, into the haven of eternal rest, you must 
stop quarrelling about faith and works, and see that you 
give them both their proper place in your hearts and lives. 
While you believe in Jesus Christ you must do his will." 
Not the hearer of the word, but the doer shall be saved" 



178 SEKMON XIV. 

This is the only faith that can give a sinner real peace 
that can make a sorrowing and broken-hearted rebel rejoice. 
My friends, are you trying to enjoy religion in this way ? 
Have you fully committed your soul to Jesus Christ ; and 
do you look for salvation only according to his promise ? 
If you are not, you have no right to feel that the burden 
of guilt, resting on your soul, can ever be taken away. 
Nothing short of faith in Jesus Christ can ever lighten the 
heavy weight of sin. Remember it is not the mere faith 
or believing that saves you, but Jesus Christ, whom that 
faith looks at. Oh ! how many go mourning, and say, " If 
I could feel that my faith was stronger — if I only knew 
that I have faith, I think I could rejoice." But can you 
not see that this is looking not to Jesus for your joy ; but 
to mere faith itself? Faith is not Christ. Faith is not 
your Saviour. Faith did not bleed and die for you. Faith 
is only the eye that looks anxiously to him ; it is only the 
hand that takes hold of him ; it is only the heart that opens 
itself to receive him. But you should not seek for joy so 
much as for GrooVs forgiveness. A man bound in chains, 
and sentenced to death, does not pray to the governor to 
make him happy, but to grant him pardon. This is the 
chief thing that he needs. If he finds that pardon, joy 
will, indeed, follow. But it is not joy that he asks for. 
And so, if you seek alone for joy from God, you»will never 
receive pardon. You must seek God's favour — his forgive- 
ness. This is what you need, and he stands ready to give 
it to you. What he tells you to do, is to believe on him, to 
accept him, and u now is the accepted time, now the day 
of salvation." Suppose a beggar was at the door. You 
offer him food. But he says, " I do not feel that I am poor 
enough ; my hunger does not pinch me hard enough yet ; 



THE SINNER TAUGHT HOW TO BELIEVE. 179 

•when I feel these more keenly I will accept your offer." 
Would you not think this strange ? And yet this is the 
way I have known many a sinner to act. This is the way 
that some of you may be acting. I beseech you, do con- 
sider that you are condemned sinners, sentenced to eternal 
death. But Jesus is your Saviour. He waits to be gra- 
cious. He died for you. He calls you by his word and 
his Spirit. Surely, if you will " believe in him you shall 
not perish, but have everlasting life." Even now, while 
you listen, if you will trust him, you may " rejoice, believing 
in God." 

A poor African, on coming to the knowledge of Christ, 
thus tells his experience : "When I first saw myself to be 
a ruined sinner, I went out into the fields, and every thing 
looked sorry. The trees looked sorry; the birds looked 
sorry ; the grass looked sorry ; the sky looked sorry ; but 
'nothing so sorry as my poor heart." But when he was 
enabled to trust in Christ, and peace came, then he went 
out into the fields, and every thing looked different. The 
trees looked glad ; the birds looked glad ; the grass looked 
glad ; the sky looked glad ; but nothing so glad as this 
poor heart. 

CM. 

t How happy every child of grace, 
Who knows his sins forgiven ; 
This earth, he cries, is not my place ; 
I seek my home in heaven. 

A country far from mortal sight, 

Yet, oh ! by faith I see ; 
The land of rest, the saint's delight, 

The heaven prepared for me. 



180 SERMON xrv. 

Oh ! what a blessed hope is ours, 

While here on earth we stay ; 
We more than taste the heavenly powers, 

And long to haste away. 

We feel the resurrection near, 

Our life in Christ concealed ; 
E'en now his glorious presence here 

Is unto us revealed. 

Questions. — 1. What did the jailer do when he found that he was 
a condemned sinner ? 2. How do many people act when you tell 
them they are sinners ? 3. What must you accept when you believe 
on the Lord Jesus Christ ? 4. Can he save you if you will not ac- 
cept salvation? 5. What must you trust to when you believe on 
him? 6. Can you buy salvation in any way? 7. What must you 
do when you believe on him ? 8. Should every man who believes on 
him fight against sin ? 9. How must a man show his faith ? 10. 
How can a sorrowing sinner be made to rejoice? 



SERMON XY. 

THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 

BY THE EEV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 
Lord I believe, help thou mine unbelief. — St. Mark ix. 24. 

When our Saviour was in the world lie spent all his time 
in doing good to sinners. He cured their diseases, as well 
as pardoned their sins. Every one of his wonderful mira- 
cles was a work of mercy and love. Once he was coming 
down from the mountain where he used to go to pray, and 
to be alone with God. As he came to the foot of it he saw 
his disciples standing together, and a great many people 
around them asking questions. When the people saw him 
coming, they left the disciples and ran to meet Jesus. They 
had heard a great deal about his wisdom, and power, and 
goodness, and they wanted to see him and hear him speak. 
One of the men who ran to him, had a son whom he dearly 
loved, greatly troubled with some evil spirit. Sometimes 
this spirit would make him tear his flesh, and foam at the 
mouth, and gnash with his teeth, and pine away as if he 
was about to die. Sometimes he would fall into the fire, 
and into the water to destroy himself. This deeply dis- 
tressed father, had already been to the disciples of Jesus, 
and had begged them to cure his son ; but they could not. 
See him now running to the true Physician ; he loses no 

16 (181) 



182 SERMON XV. 

time ; he shows by his haste that he is in earnest. Hear 
now how he speaks to Jesus, as he makes known his case to 
him. He does not say, " Lord I know thou canst cure my 
son ; I come with full and perfect belief in thy power and 
goodness." He does not say, "I have not a shadow of 
doubt in thy willingness or ability to heal his disease." 
No, nothing like this. But he says to the Saviour, "I have 
been to thy disciples, to see if they could cure him, but they 
were not able ; I now bring him unto Thee ; if thou canst 
do any thing, have compassion on us and help us." As 
much as to say, " thy disciples could not heal him, I do not 
know whether thou canst heal him or not, I am afraid that 
his case is too bad even for thy power, thou also mayest fail to 
cure him if thou attempt it, yet, if thou canst do any thing 
help us." The father saw that he could do no better, there 
was no one else to whom he could go ; and to Jesus he went 
half believing, half doubting, and saying in his heart, 

" I can but perish if I go, 

I am resolved to try, 
For if I stay away I know 

I must for ever die." 

See them now standing together; with what kindness and 
pity does Jesus look upon him, and hear his mournful com- 
plaint ! He seems to take no notice of his disciples, nor 
of the crowd gathered around him. All his thoughts seem 
to be given to this poor man, and his afflicted son. And 
hear the answer that Jesus now gives to this doubting man. 
What is that he says ? Does he say, " No, I cannot cure 
your son ; you have some doubts of my power and goodness ; 
I will not cure him, until your fahh is made perfect — until 
not a doubt rests on your mind, — go back and mourn over 



THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 183 

your wretchedness a little longer until every cloud of doubt 
is gone, then come to me, and I may heal your son." Is 
this what he says ? No, iry friends, nothing like it. His 
answer was, " if thou canst believe, all things are possible 
to him that believeth." When the father of the child, 
heard this, he said to himself, " Oh how much depends on 
my faith! If I believe, he may be cured." He felt that 
Jesus knew what was in his very heart ; then he turned to 
Jesus, " and cried out and said with tears, Lord I believe, help 
thou mine unbelief." In other words, "I hardly know 
what to do, I am struggling . between hope and fear, I do 
think I have some faith; I do try to believe; I pray that I 
may believe; yet my faith is not so strong as it ought to be. 
I know not exactly how much I ought to believe. Satan 
tempts me to distrust; I fear lest after all, I may deceive 
myself. Lord help my weak faith — my unbelief. Give me 
more faith, and though I do not believe as I ought, have 
mercy on my child, and heal him. 

There are many persons in doubt and trouble about the 
forgiveness of their sins, just as this father was about his 
child. They want to be Christians, but they think they 
must have a perfect faith, and be free from every fear or 
doubt, before they are fit to call themselves Christians. 
There are a great many persons, indeed, who ought to have 
this fear, and tremble about themselves. If you never 
pray — or if you live in sin — if you let your mind run on 
wicked thoughts and wishes — if you do not go to church to 
worship God — if you will not listen to the Bible, or to ser- 
mons, when read to you ; if you have any hatred in your 
hearts, to your fellow-creatures, or your neighbours — or if 
you talk of them harshly ; if you are living in any such 
things as these, then you have good cause to be troubled ; 



184 SEEMON XV. 

you may well doubt whether Jesus has forgiven your sins. 
So long as you are living in this way, he will never forgive 
you. If you are living so, and are troubled about it, I 
bless God in my soul for it. The most dangerous state you 
can be in, is when you are living in sin, and yet, speaking 
peace to yourself. 

But I am about to speak to those who sincerely want to 
be Christians. I hope there are some such here. I would 
like to take them by the hand, and show them the way to 
the mercy seat of their Saviour. Very often we find such 
persons troubled with many doubts and fears ; they want to 
be converted, but they do not know what conversion is, 
they cannot feel as they have heard others say they feel ; 
they cannot see the way of salvation as clearly as they 
would like ; for these reasons they will not believe they are 
converted, they will not join the church, they will not come 
out and say before the world, that they belong to the Lord 
Jesus Christ. They are saying," Lord, I believe, help thou 
mine unbelief." Are there any of these persons here? 
If there are, I beg you to turn all your thoughts to what I 
have to say. I will try and tell you some things that keep 
you halting in doubt and fear ; that prevent you from being 
decided and whole hearted Christians. 

1st. Some persons will not believe that they have Chris- 
tian faith, until they know certainly, that they are con- 
verted. To be converted, is to have your heart changed, and 
made new. When a man is converted, the Bible says he is 
a "new man," — "born again," — "renewed in the inner 
man." To be converted, is to be turned from the love and 
the practice of all wicked things, to God, and every thing 
that is good. Every man, and woman, who would be pre- 
pared for heaven, must be converted by the power of God, 



THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 185 

in this way. If there be no conversion, there can be no 
religion, and if there be no religion, there can be no fitness 
for heaven. Our Saviour said, " Except ye be converted, 
and become as little children, ye cannot enter into the king- 
dom of God." I tell you on the certainty of God's truth, 
that if you be not converted, you can no more go into 
heaven, than you could have come into this world, without 
being born. But then, what is it to be converted ? I will 
tell you of a good woman I once knew. She was in great 
trouble, because she could hot think herself converted. 
She called to see her minister, he tried to comfort her, but 
she sat mourning, and weeping, because she could not 
think herself converted. At last the minister said to her, 
" my dear madam, what are your feelings towards God, 
and the Bible and religion now ? Do you fear God, and 
love to pray ? Do you often think of heaven ? Are you 
afraid of sinning against God ? Do you love to read your 
Bible ? Do you feel that you are a poor miserable sin- 
ner ? " She answered, " Oh sir, I do indeed feel all this? 
very deeply ; and if I only thought I was converted, and fit 
to join the church, and go to heaven, I should be one of 
the happiest of creatures. The minister then asked her, 
have you felt this all your life ? " Oh no Sir," she said, 
" I began to experience these feelings in my heart, about a 
year ago, they have kept on increasing until now " Tb<* 
minister asked, " what did you think of God, and the 
Bible, and religion, before tnese feelings came on ? " She 
said, " I careil nothing for them, I often laughed at reli- 
gious people, and I lived in sin, without a single fear." 
Then asked the minister, "do you not think there has 
been a great change made in your heart, and conduct ? You 
love now, what you once hated, you hate now, what you 

16* 



186 SERMON XV. 

once loved. Who could have made this change in you ? 
You did not do it yourself. No man, no angel did it." 
She said " I am certainly a different woman in many things, 
from what I then was ; my wishes and pleasures, are cer- 
tainly much changed ; I love now to go to church, and to 
read my Bible, and to be with the people of God, I am 
afraid of sin now ; but you would not call that conversion, 
would you?" "Yes," said the minister, "conversion, 
means a change from one thing to another. In conversion 
you are made a " new creature'' Do you not sec that you 
are new in many things. In conversion, old things pass 
away, all things become new. Are not many of the old 
things that used to take up your heart, gone ? Have not 
new ones taken their place ? I call that conversion, which 
lights up your mind, and shows you the beauty of religion. 
I call that conversion, which humbles your proud heart, and 
makes you think less of yourself, and more of God. I call 
that conversion, which makes you quit all kinds of wicked 
conversation, and conduct, and try to do good, and to live holy 
lives, which makes you afraid of the sinful amusements of 
the world, which makes you seek your happiness among the 
people of God, and in the service of Jesus Christ. Any man, 
who experiences and practices all this, has certainly had 
his heart and life, greatly changed from their natural state. 
This change, I call conversion. No power short of God, 
could have made it in you, said the minister to this lady. 
At last he prayed with her, and she went back to her home. 
The more she thought of it, the more she saw, how true it 
was, that she had undergone some great change. She could 
not tell how, or when, or by whom. She soon saw that she 
had been long looking for some great joy from heaven, or 
something else, she did not know what, to make her certain 



THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 187 

that she was converted. She saw that she had chosen, in 
her mind, her own way for being converted, and because 
God did not choose to convert her, in that way, she was not 
willing to believe herself converted at all. She went to her 
Bible, there she read an account of a man, who had Ice i 
born blind but who had been brought to sight by the Saviour. 
When the people heard of this miracle, they went to the 
man, and asked him how he had received his sight, but he 
could tell them very little about it ; he did not seem to know 
very well, who did it, or when he did it ; all he coald say 
about him, was, "whether he be a sinner or no, I know not, 
one thing I know, that whereas I was blind, now I see." 
Now it was just so with this lady, she could not tell when 
she was so changed, nor how she was so changed, but one 
thing she knew, she was changed. At last she came to the 
minister to join the church. The day she came to the com- 
munion, was a happy day for her, though she came with an 
humble, weeping heart, and her head bowed down toward 
the earth, deeply sensible of her own unworthiness ; as she 
kneeled down at the table of the Lord, how comforting to 
her heart, must have been those words of the poet — 

" Come humble sinner in whose breast, 
A thousand thoughts revolve, 
Come with your guilt and fear oppressed, 
And make this last resolve. 

Til go to Jesus, though my sins 

Have like a mountain rose ; 
I know his courts, I'll enter in, 

"Whatever may oppose." 

There this humble Christian, entered into a solemn agree- 
ment, to live to God's glory the rest of her days. And a 



188 SERMON XV. 

bright and shining light she was in the church, loving all, 
and doing good to all. Not many months had rolled round, 
before she was laid upon her bed of death. As soon as the 
minister heard of her sickness, he called to see her. When 
he stood by her bedside, she took him by the hand, and 
said, " Oh sir, I bless God, and you, for the precious words 
you spoke to me, when I was so troubled, and fearful, lest 
I was not converted. Jesus is now precious to me, I can 
trust him for the pardon of all my sins; for my everlasting 
salvation. But I have one thing to mourn. It is that I 
should have lost so much happiness, in not feeling, and 
declaring, what God had done for my soul ; many a day 
have I gone mourning, when I ought to have been rejoicing 
in Jesus Christ. There are many other anxious, penitent 
sinners, who are acting in the same way. Oh, that they 
were here, and I could tell them my experience ; but when 
my eyes are closed in death, you will preach my funeral 
sermon. I want you to speak to them for me ; tell those 
who may come to my burial ; tell all penitent sinners, not 
to delay owning God before the world, because they do not 
understand all about their conversion, or because it is not 
as perfect as they want it to be. Tell them to lose no 
time in confessing Christ, as their Lord and Saviour." Thu3 
she died a happy Christian, and ripe for heaven. 

Are any of you, my dear friends, in fear about your con 
version, as this good woman was ? Let me say to you, that 
if you would have joy in Christ, you must do his will, he 
commands you to confess him before men, and promises to 
confess you before the angels of heaven. If you will try 
to go forward in his service, he will open the way before 
you, he will make darkness light, and crooked ways straight. 
Did you ever go out in a dark night, with a burning candle. 



THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 189 

in your hand? You could see only a step or two around 
you, but as you moved onward, the light was cast on before 
you, each step lighted up your way so as to enable you to 
take another, with safety and confidence, and so on until 
you came to your journey's end. So it often is with the 
young and doubting Christian, he is afraid to move forward, 
he stands still and mourns, he wastes many precious days 
in wondering whether he is converted. If he would only 
take the light that God has given him, and go forward in 
his strength, darkness and sorrow would give way before 
him. If he would fight against sin and the devil, they 
would flee from him, his doubts would take to themselves 
wings, and fly away, and his paih would " shine more and 
more, unto the perfect day." 

2d. Many persons, will not believe, that they have 
Christian faith, because they cannot feel, as they hear others 
say they feel, in religion. I once knew a man, whose reli- 
gion seemed to be full of joy, he seemed for a time, to live 
in the very sunshine of God's grace. One day, I stepped 
into a store, and heard him and another professing Chris- 
tian, talking about their religious experience. This happy 
Christian, said, he could look back and rejoice in the very 
day and hour, when he was converted, that since that 
time, a doubt of his salvation, had never crossed his mind. 
The other professor, said he could not feel so, he was try- 
ing to serve God in his poor way — he often found himself 
greatly tempted ; often in doubt ; and his prayer was, "God 
be merciful to me, a sinner." I left them soon, and said 
to myself, that I could always be as happy as that pro- 
fessing Christian, says he is ! Why can I not be ? For 
more than a week, I thought of it every day. But will you 
believe it ? Scarcely ten days had passed over our heads, 



190 BERMON XV. 

before this boasting professor, was found to be guilty of 
dishonesty and falsehood. So clear was the proof against 
him, that he was obliged to gather the few things, he had, 
and run off from the town. Now this man, was a vile hypo- 
crite. I do not say, that this would be the case with all 
who profess to be happy Christians ; God forbid. I bless 
God, that there are many truly sincere and happy Chris- 
tians ; but God does not make all Christians equally happy. 
All men should seek to be happy in religion, but, all are 
not exactly the same in their religious experience. We 
are all weak and sinful, and easily tempted. 

My friends, wherever there is true religion, there is true 
humility. That humility will sometimes make persons, of 
the sincerest religious feelings, doubt whether they are 
really converted to God. It is well for Christians, some- 
times, to have these doubts and fears. They are to the Chris- 
tian life what the autumn and the winter are to the 
seasons of the year. It would not do for us always to have 
spring ; delightful as this season is, we could not have it 
continue all the year; our fruits could not ripen, our har- 
vests could not be gathered. "We could not like to have it 
summer all the year round. The ground would become 
parched, all the trees and plants of the earth would dry up, 
we would have no opportunity to put in the grain, for 
another crop. The autumn and the winter, are, indeed, 
seasons, when every thing looks barren and desolate. No 
sign of life appears over the fields and forests, and cold 
and stormy winds howl mournfully around our houses; yet 
we cannot do without the winter. The trees are not dead, 
though they seem to be so ; the very tempests that blow 
upon them, strengthen and tighten their roots in the ground. 
The sun is not blotted out, though he does not shine so 



THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 191 

brightly. The winter, seems to give rest to every thing, 
and to prepare it for a strong, and healthy growth in the 
spring, and an abundant harvest, in the summer. So it often 
is with the doubts and fears of the Christian. They are the 
seasons of autumn, and winter, in his religious experience. 
They make him value his seasons of religious joy the more 
when they do come; they make him more watchful against 
temptation and sin ; they ought to make him more prayer- 
ful — more zealous for God, and more abundant in good 
fruits, and good works. There are very few sincere Chris- 
tians, who are not obliged to say, "Lord I believe, help 
thou mine unbelief." Very few, who are not sometimes in 
hope, sometimes in fear, yet by the grace of God, they press 
on through their trials and doubts, they fight against sin, 
and the world, and the devil ; they move on against the 
enemy — against all difficulties, and at last they stand up 
before God, and he puts on their heads, the crown of life, 
then he says to them, " these are they, that have come out 
of great tribulation and; sorrow, and have washed their 
robes, and made them white, in the blood of the Lamb." 

My Christian friends, remember that your life on earth, 
is the life of a soldier. The soldier, seldom has ease, and 
pleasure and joy. Sometimes, indeed, after a hard fight, in 
which he has gained the battle, he rejoices as he sees the 
enemy flying before him, or lying humbly at his feet, but 
this joy, he can never have, without taking part in the 
fierce and deadly fight. Believer, you are engaged in a 
battle which will last all your life long. Go on, then fight- 
ing in the midst of doubts and fears. "Look only to 
Jesus, the author, and finisher of your faith," Your way 
may be rough towards the ljind of rest, darkness and storms 
may hang round your path, you may often be cast down, 



192 SERMON XV. 

but hold fast to the promises of Jesus, your captain and 
guide. When temptation comes, turn to him for help, say 
to Satan, " get thee behind me." When doubts come, say 
"Lord I believe, help thou mine unbelief." When the 
world invites, say, " Lord to whom shall I go, but unto thee, 
thou hast the word of eternal life." Pray much — think of 
Jesus, who died for you much. Be faithful in all your 
duties — honest in all your conduct — kind and gentle to all. 
Trust only in Jesus Christ, and all will come right at last. 
The darkness will give way before you, the hills will be 
levelled down, the way will become smooth, the sun will at 
last shine upon you, and presently you will look beyond 
the Jordan of death, to the glorious land of promise. Only 
be faithful, and heaven shall be yours. 

CM. 

thou, -whose tender mercy hears 

Contrition's humble sigh ; 
Whose hand, indulgent, wipes the tears 

From sorrow's weeping eye ; — 

See, low before thy throne of grace, 

A wretched wanderer mourn : 
Hast thou not bid me seek thy face ? 

Hast thou not said — Return ? 

Anil shall my guilty fears prevail 

To drive me from thy feet? 
Oh ! let not this dear refuge fail, 

This only safe retreat. 

Absent from thee, my guide ! my light I 

Without one cheering ray : 
Through dangers, fears, and gloomy night, 

How desolate my way ! 



THE SINNER TRYING TO BELIEVE. 193 

Oh ! shine on this benighted heart, 

"With beams of mercy shine 1 
And let thy healing voice impart 

A taste of joys divine. 

Questions. — 1. What did this poor man come to the Saviour for ? 
2. Had he perfect faith that Jesus could cure his son ? 3. What 
did Jesus say to him ? 4. Must every man be converted to God 
oefore he can be saved ? 5. Are some persons converted before 
they are willing to believe it? 6. Must all Christians feel alike 
when they are converted? 7. Does true religion make a man proud 
or humble? 8. What is the Christian life like? 9. Do true Chris- 
tians <wer have doubts ? 10. What ought they to do in timee of 
doupt I 



1* 






SERMON XYI. 

THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLY. 

BY THE KEY. J. F. HOFF. 



But as lie which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in al r igju»- 
ner of conversation ; because it is written, Be ye holy : for I am 
holy.— 1 Peter i. 15, 16. 

We are all in much danger of being satisfied with the 
outward service of religion, and of becoming indifferent 
about the inward part, which is the love and the fear of 
Almighty God, our Creator and Redeemer. Even when 
men begin well the Christian course, they often soon slacken 
in Christian duties ; as if it were enough to have once been 
accounted worthy to enter the church of Christ, and after- 
ward, we might live as we p*jase; as though Christ Jesus, 
our Saviour, was very strict in requiring us to possess his 
name, but not so strict in requiring us to honour his name, 
by holiness of conduct and obedience to his 1 blessed will. 
Against all such dangerous mistakes, we are often, and 
anxiously exhorted in the Scriptures. Here St. Peter says, 
"as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all 
manner of conversation;" — that is, as God who has invited 
you to the feast of the gospel, is holy and cannot look upon 
sin, and so do ye, who have entered his house, sat down 
at his table, see that ye are holy and pure and good in all 
(194) 



THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLY. 195 

your words, thoughts and works. He adds " for it is writ- 
ten " — (that means it is written in the sacred books of the 
Old Testament ) — " it is written, Be ye holy : for I am 
holy." So it was written again and again by Moses; and 
our Saviour in like manner, at the end of his sermon on 
the Mount, said, " Be ye perfect, even as your Father in 
Heaven is perfect." 

Let us my dear friends, first try and get some idea of 
the holiness of God, and then impress our dull hearts with 
the thought, that we must be like him. And may God 
help us to understand and know his truth and our duty. 

I. Let us try and get some idea oe the holiness of 
God. 

1. Let us hear what the Bible expressly says of God's 
holiness. Think of some of the names by which God calls 
himself in the Bible. He is called " the Holy God," " the 
Holy one of Israel," and " the Holy One ; " again it is said 
his "name is Holy." 

His nature is thus spoken of: " Who is like unto thee, 
glorious in holiness," " Who shall not fear thee and glorify 
thy name, for thou only art holy;" "Thou art not a God 
that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell 
with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight, thou 
hatest all the workers of iniquity ;" " Thou art of purer 
eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity." 

His works are thus mentioned; " The Lord is righteous 
in all his ways and holy in all his works ;" " Just and true 
are thy ways, thou King of Saints." 

2. Let us remember what the Bible tells us of the worship 
of God in heaven. Heaven is called " the holy place," his 
"holy habitation," and those who inhabit it, angels and 
redeemed men, are all holy. St. John in the book of Reve- 



196 SERMON XVI. 

lation tells us of his having been in the Spirit and being 
taken to Heaven he saw the throne of God, and Him that 
sits upon it, and the elders surrounding it, and the seven 
lamps burning before it. The song he there heard, without 
rest day or night, was " Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty 
which was, and is, and is to come." And while this glory 
and honour and thanks are given by some, the four and 
twenty elders fall down before the throne, and worship him 
that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before 
him, saying " Thou art worthy, Lord, to receive glory 
and honour and power : for thou hast created all things, 
and for thy pleasure they are and were created." 

Heaven itself is, by St. John described, as the holy city, 
into which nothing shall be permitted to enter, that is 
unclean, or that defileth. " Blessed are they that do his 
commandments, that they may enter through the gates into 
the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whore- 
mongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth 
and maketh a lie." Does not all this give us high thoughts 
of the holiness of him with whom we have to do, and ought 
it not to make us humble, serious, earnest, and holy, when 
we oifer our worship to God ? 

3. To get right thoughts on this subject, we must con- 
sider, moreover, the holiness of the law of God. His law is 
holy and does not allow of sin in the least matter. Such 
was the law God gave to Adam in Paradise. God gave him 
a large liberty in the use of the good things he had made ; 
but he did not permit the least disobedience ; nay, not even 
so much as the eating of the fruit of the forbidden tree. 
He was not to look at it, or touch it. And as in this mat- 
ter, so in every thing else, God expected of him a perfect 
obedience. But alas! the man and the woman, did not 



THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLT. 197 

regard the voice of the Lord ; they took of the fruit, and 
their disobedience was soon followed by the judgment and 
wrath of God, let loose on them, and all mankind. 

God afterward, more fully published his will in the Ten 
Commandments, which were first spoken from Mount Sinai 
to the Israelites. They stood trembling around, at the 
voice of the Lord, and at the thunder and lightnings, and 
earthquakes, with which God saw fit to visit them, that they 
might know his power and majesty. These commandments 
were then, by the Lord's own finger, written and marked 
in two tables of stone, which Moses brought down from the 
Mount. God ordered that these tables be kept, laid up in 
the ark. Would that they were written deeply in the hearts 
of all who hear them, and laid up in our inmost soul. The 
ten commandments contain, in a little space, the sum of the 
duties we owe to God, and to our neighbour. And that we 
may understand how holy and pure they are, only consider 
the last of them, which forbids our coveting or desiring 
improperly any thing belonging to another. This com- 
mand opened the eyes of St. Paul, to see how broad is the 
law of God, and it may open ours too. It shows us that 
the law forbids evil thoughts, and if it forbids evil thoughts 
and desires, it surely forbids evil actions, and wicked con- 
duct of every kind and degree, and requires us to serve 
God in all holiness of life. Our Saviour tells us, that the 
two great commands are, to love God with all the heart 
and mind, and soul and strength, and to love our neighbour 
as ourselves. Oh, who can doubt that God is holy, since 
he requires of his creatures, such perfect love and obedi- 
ence ! 

In the rest of the Bible, by prophets and apostles, and 
other holy men, and by Jesus himself, the law of God, in 

17* 



198 BEEMON XVI. 

all its parts, is more fully explained, and the more it 13 
opened, the more plainly does its purity appear. It leaves 
no room for sin. It is holy, because God is holy. Wicked 
thoughts, idle words, wrong tempers, impure desires, evil 
actions of every kind, secret and open, whether such as do 
harm to others, or such as only injure ourselves, all are 
condemned. God is to be sought, worshipped, and obeyed, 
his name is to be hallowed, his word, his house, his Sab- 
baths are to be accounted holy, his ministers to be heard 
with respect. He requires us to be faithful in the duties 
of our station, as parents and children, as masters and ser- 
vants, as rulers and subjects, as pastors and people. We 
are to harm no one by word or deed, but in every way to 
seek each others good; to be honest, truth-loving, indus- 
trious, self-denying, patient, forgiving. His law also re- 
quires us to have his fear^nd love continually in our hearts, 
to set the Lord always before us, as the Observer and 
Judge of all ; to strive to please him in every thing ; to 
walk before him as humble and loving children, who have 
no will of their own, except to do the will of their heavenly 
Father. 

Such is the law of God. It is as St. Paul says " holy, 
just and good." "Yea," as David before said of it, "it 
is perfect.' How holy then is God ! how righteous and 
pure must be his nature ! how lowly should we bow, and 
how holily ought we to live in his sight. 

Do we wish for further proof of God's holiness ? Then 
let us consider. 

4. How in the work and character of Jesus Christ, his 
holiness is displayed. He is the Son, the only Son of the 
Father, "the image of the invisible God." In him we see 
what God is. Now, perhaps, the first thought that strikes 






THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLT. 199 

you, in considering what Jesus did and suffered on our 
behalf, is " how kind, how full of love was he, to come into 
the world to save sinners, and to save them, too, by dying 
for them." Surely this was love in Jesus, and love in the 
Father who sent him. But consider again. Do you not here 
see holiness and justice, as well as love ? Why did Jesus 
die ? Was it not because God would not pardon even peni- 
tent sinners, without some proper sacrifice being made? 
We poor sinners, could make no satisfaction, could offer no 
sacrifice for sin. Yet, certainly a sacrifice was needed, 
otherwise, Jesus would not have suffered ; he, the Lamb of 
God, took away the sins of the world by dying for us on 
the cross. How holy and true and just is God, that he 
will not pass by the transgression of the guilty, without 
having satisfaction made for sin, though the only one in 
heaven or earth who could make that satisfaction, was his 
dearly beloved Son. Tremble, my soul, before a God so pure, 
and let not Satan tempt thee to think that He can look upon 
any sin without displeasure, yea, without the severest con- 
demnation, which will send thee to the bottomless pit, unless 
thou repent and believe in Jesus. Ye, who with the wicked 
of old, say that " God is even such an one as ourselves ;" 
think of Calvary, think of God's only Son, remember his 
bitter cries, his awful groans, his bowed head, his pierced 
hands, his flowing blood, — see the sacrifice for your sins, 
and then say is not God a holy God, and jealous for his 
law? 

5. That we may feel this more deeply, remember the 
everlasting punishment which God threatens against impeni- 
tent sinners. He has often punished sin in this world. 
Thus he destroyed all who lived in the days of old Noah, 
with a flood ; so he burned up Sodom and Gomorrah. But 



200 SERMON XVI. 

these punishments were only for a while, a few hours at 
most, and the waters drowned, or the fire consumed them. 
Not so will the punishment in hell he. There soul and body 
are to suffer, and that for ever. Why so ? Is not God, a 
God of love, and a God of mercy ? Yes, He is, and far 
beyond what we can think. But he is also a God of holi- 
ness, purity, and justice. He necessarily hates sin, and 
must punish sinners, who hear not his voice, and will not 
believe and obey his Son. God is holy, and how high 
above all our thoughts must that holiness be, which requires 
the punishment of men and devils, through everlasting ages. 
Yet, so it is, His word has declared it. Let us not doubt, 
but, as our Saviour says, "Fear him who is able to destroy 
both body and soul in hell." 

These are some of the considerations which may, perhaps, 
by God's blessing, make us feel that he is, indeed, the Holy 
One. 

II. The text not only speaks of the holiness of God, BUT 

THE NECESSITY OF OUR BEING LIKE HIM IN TRUE HOLINESS. 

As he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all 
manner of conversation ; because it is written, be ye holy : 
for I am holy. 

Time would fail us to repeat all that the Scriptures con- 
tain about the duty of holiness. This same Apostle, St. 
Peter, gives much exhortation on this subject. He tells us 
to "lay aside all malice, guile, hypocrisy, envy, evil speak- 
ing, and as new born babes, to desire the milk of God's 
word, that we may grow thereby." He reminds Chris- 
tians that they are " a chosen generation, a royal priest- 
hood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that we should show 
forth the praises of Him, who hath called us out of dark- 
ness into His marvellous light." "The will of God," he 



THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLY. 201 

Bays is, "that with well doing," we may put our enemies 
to silence. "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adver- 
sary the devil, as a roaring lion, goeth about, seeking whom 
he may devour." "Add to your faith, virtue, and to 
virtue, knowledge, and to knowledge, temperance, and to 
temperance, patience, and to patience, godliness, and to 
godliness, brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, 
charity." "Give diligence to make your calling and elec- 
tion sure, for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall." 
" Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ." These are a few of the words, 
whereby we are exhorted by St. Peter, to holiness of heart 
and life. Thus, St. Paul, too, had written, " there is no 
condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk 
not after the flesh, but after the spirit ;" as much as to say, 
if we are true believers in Christ, we will not live as " the 
flesh," (the wicked nature we brought into the world,) is 
inclined to live, but we will fight against it, and live under 
the direction and influence of the Holy Spirit, who guides 
us into the ways of God. And our Lord himself says that 
his followers must be the salt of the earth, and the light of 
the world, they must lay up treasure in Heaven, and not 
attempt to serve two masters, the world and God, but God 
only ; that as every tree is known by its fruits, so every man 
is to be known by his life, and that the tree which bears 
not good fruit, must be cut down and cast into the fire. 
" Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter 
into the kingdom of Heaven, but he that doeth -the will of 
my Father which is in Heaven." What does all this mean 
but that we must be holy ? 

If it is asked, why we must be holy, I answer, we must 
be so for two reasons. 



202 SERMON XVI. 

1. Without holiness, God can take no pleasure in us. 
Now you will understand, that God pardons us freely when 
we repent and believe, and that, not for any good thing in 
us, but for the merit and death of his Son Jesus Christ. 
He has redeemed us with his own blood, and for his sake, 
God forgives the broken hearted one, who seeks his face. 
But then, it is needful that he, who would become, through 
grace, a child of God, should be sincere, honest and hearty 
in his intentions; and unless he profit by the grace given, 
and strive to live and walk in newness and righteousness of 
life, according to the commandments of God, the Lord will 
no longer own him for his child and servant. It is true, 
that God's children are not perfect, far from it. They 
could not stand before God, if he were to be severe in deal- 
ing with them for the sins of a single day. Their best 
thoughts and works are stained with sin. But then his peo- 
ple do really love God, and desire to please him, and as 
such God loves them. They put their whole trust in his 
mercy, and are sorrowful for all their sins. They do not 
hide their transgressions, and indulge in secret wickedness, 
but their wish and prayer is, that God will search them, 
and see what way of evil they may be in, and will lead them 
in the way everlasting. God loves to dwell with such. To 
this man will he look, " to him that is of a poor and hum- 
ble spirit, and that trembles at his word." But the proud, 
and wicked he keeps afar off. He disowns them. Those 
that do not repent of their sins, and care not for his favour, 
and despise his Son, and are not striving to enter into his 
kingdom and glory, he will not smile upon. The Savioui 
died, indeed, for them, however wicked, but he engages to 
save none, except they come to him, and take his yoke upon 
their necks. Where there is a spark of love to himself, 



THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLT. 203 

God knows it, and is well pleased to behold it. He watches 
it, he blows upon it by his Spirit, and when it begins to 
kindle into a flame, he rejoices in it, for it is the light of 
holiness, like himself, who is the true light. Thus it is he 
prepares his people to be lights in the world, and to shine 
as stars in Heaven forever. 

2. Another reason why we must be holy, is, that with- 
out holiness we can have no satisfaction in Grod. Every 
thing follows its own nature. Worldly men following their 
own natures, seek the things of the world ; but the world is 
passing away, and all that is in it. Surely it is our wisdom 
to drink of a larger and- deeper spring, which will not fail. 
That spring is in God. He who seeks God, and his favour 
and blessing, is making sure of happiness now, and he 
shall be happy forever. But to seek God, and find satis- 
faction in his worship and ways, we must be in some re- 
spects like him. God is holy, and to be satisfied in him we 
must be holy too. The holy child of God, even here, already 
enjoys more of true happiness, than can be had by any of 
the children of the world ; yea, if he be afflicted and weighed 
down with earthly sorrows, with poverty and sickness, and 
hard usage, yet is he more blessed than if he were seated 
on a throne, or lying on beds of ivory, without being able 
to count God his friend. He feels the working of the Spirit 
within him, drawing up his mind to God, and affording him 
the proof that he is indeed, a child of the most High, and 
therefore, has liberty to come with boldness in the name of 
Jesus, and make all his requests and needs known to his 
heavenly Father. Such an one as this, alone, is fitted to 
enter heaven. "Without holiness no man shall see the 
Lord." So God has decreed it. So, too, it must be in the 
nature of things. Heaven is a holy place, all its employ- 



204 SERMON XVI. 

ments, and all who dwell in it are holy. How then, could 
one who is not holy, enter it and live. He would find none 
to take pleasure in, no sound, no sight, but would remind 
him of his sin and wickedness. His guilty heart would tor- 
ment him, and give him no rest, day nor night. The light, 
and brightness of that holy place, would only the more 
show him how filthy his soul was with the pollution of sin. 
He would desire and seek after some dark place, that his 
sin might be hid. But no such dark place is there in 
heaven. The only darkness that would be fitted for him, 
is that, which the Saviour calls the " outer darkness, where 
there is wailing and gnashing of teeth." 

So then without holiness God can take no pleasure in Us, 
and we can have no satisfaction in him. 

And now, it will be well for us to think seriously of this 
holy God, as the observer of all we do. It is not the eye 
of a man which is upon us ; though in the presence of a holy 
man, our thoughts are made sober and solemn. It is not 
an angel before whom we stand ; though if an angel stood 
in our way, as one stood in the way of Balaam, we would 
quickly stop in any wicked path, on which we might have 
entered. We are under the notice of the eye which is in 
every place, beholding the evil and the good, the high and 
the low, what is secret, and what is open. God sees our 
conduct, hears our words, knows our thoughts, desires, and 
intentions. He is perfectly holy. No sin can for a moment 
dwell near him. He abhors it. The brightest angel before 
his throne, on whom should be found the least spot of sin, 
he would at once detest, and cast him into the deep abyss 
of hell. Heaven would no longer be heaven to him, if a 
breath of sin tainted any part of it. This God searches us. 
"What must be his mind in regard to us ? How must his 



THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLY. 205 

holiness make him look upon our sinfulness ? Think not that 
God is indifferent about us and our characters. He is in- 
different about none of us, not the least one. His kingdom 
is over all, and his eye is upon all. It is upon us here to- 
day. It is a holy eye, and, alas, how must it be offended, 
with the sight of all our wickedness. Does not the soul of 
the impenitent man shrink and tremble within him ? Does 
not the careless sinner, fear to remember the holy God, in 
whose hands his breath is, and whom he hath not glorified ? 
that the Lord would so manifest his holiness to the hearts 
and consciences of every sinner who hears the gospel, that, 
feeling his own vileness and un worthiness, he might at once 
cry for mercy, and flee to the fountain which has been 
opened for sin and uncleanness, in the Saviour's blood. His 
blood alone, can take away the guilt of sin. His Spirit 
alone, can remove the love of sin from the heart, and beget 
within us, new hearts and right minds. 

Finally, let those who would be the children of God, 
never forget that their Father in Heaven, is the holy One, 
who requires holiness in all who approach him. Alas, how 
hard it is to keep ourselves from forgetting this, plain as it 
may be ! How soon do we often lose our best thoughts, 
and desires for God's service ! St. Paul says, that Jesus 
" gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all ini- 
quity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of 
good works." Have we, who profess ourselves his follow- 
ers, lived according to the dignity, and holiness of our call- 
ing, as the people of the Saviour ? Whose heart does not 
condemn him ? Who does not blush to think, how far 
short of his vows and promises, he has fallen ? Who does 
not tremble, when he thinks of the awful distance between 
God's holiness and purity, and the holiness of our best 

18 



206 SERMON XVI. 

works ? We have all the greatest need to be humble and 
penitent. But we must not only mourn the past, we must 
strive to improve the future. Let us "lay aside every 
weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and run 
with patience the race which is set before us, looking unto 
Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our faith." Let us 
" put off the old man, which is corrupt, and put on the new 
man, which is renewed after the image of him who created 
us." In our hearing of God's word, let us be serious and 
attentive, and our mind be, " speak Lord, for thy servant 
heareth." In our worship of God, let us stir up our souls 
to worship him in spirit, and in truth, and so we will find 
every place where we seek him, as Jacob said, " the house 
of God, and the gate of heaven." When tempted to sin, 
let us say, with Joseph, " how can I do this great wicked- 
ness, and sin against God." And when we discover a 
coldness, and deadness in ourselves about religion, let us 
think of the guilt of trifling with God, and our own souls, 
while he is calling us, to " work out our salvation, with fear 
and trembling," and the blood of Jesus, speaks to us of 
love and mercy, and Satan is striving with all his might for 
our destruction, and death is stealing upon us like a thief, 
and the throne of Judgment is just before us, and Heaven's 
glory shines down upon us from on high, and hell's deep 
groans, and sighs, and bitter lamentations, come up to us 
from beneath. Awake thou that sleepest, and rest not, day 
nor night, until thy salvation is finished, and thy feet stand 
upon the only resting place there is for thee, and that is 
the mount of God, the heavenly Jerusalem. 

CM. 

that the Lord would teach my tongue 
The heavenly song to raise ; 



THE CHRISTIAN MUST BE HOLT. 207 

that the Lord my heart would fill 
With love, and joy, and praise ! 

that the Lord my steps would guide 

In paths of righteousness ; 
that the Lord my lips would teach 
His ways and works to bless 1 

that the Lord would give me faith 

The blessed Christ to see ; 
that he now would give me grace, 

That I to him may flee ! 

that the Lord would make me know 

The riches of his grace ; 
Then should I love and praise him too, 

And dying, see his face. 

Questions. — 1. What does God say in the text about being holy ? 
2. Can you tell some of the names, by which God is called in th« 
Bible ? 3. What verse is that in which you have heard about God's 
having " no pleasure in wickedness ?" 4. What verse is that about 
the ways and works of God, being holy ? 5. What kind of a city, is 
Heaven called? 6. Who shall enter into it? 7. Who shall by no 
means enter it? 8. What kind of law has God given us? 9. Did 
God allow Adam in Paradise to disobey him in any thing ? 10. Who 
gave us the Ten Commandments ? 11. Do these Commandments for- 
bid every kind of sin ? 12. Why did Jesus Christ suffer on the cross ? 
13. Could we have made satisfaction to God for our sins ? 14. What 
will God do with the wicked, who do not repent? 15. Does it not 
then appear that 'God is a holy God ? 16. Does he not require us to 
be like him ? 17. What does St. Peter tell about Christians being " a 
chosen generation V* 18. What does Jesus say of those who cry to 
him "Lord, Lord?" 19. Why must we be holy? 20. Whom does 
God love? 21. Can God look with favour on the wicked ? 22. Can 
we be happy without loving and serving God ? 23. Can we love God 
and serve him, without being holy in heart ? 24. Can we go to 
Heaven, without being holy now ? 25. What must unholy men do? 
26. Can their wickedness be forgiven, and their hearts be made clean ? 
26. Ought not those who profess to be Christians, to grow in holiness 
every day ? 



SERMON XYIL 

CONFIRMATION. 

BY THE REV. ROBERT NELSON. 
Pay thy vows. — Psalm 1. 14. 

These words of the Psalmist will serve as a suitable text 
for a short sermon on Confirmation. 'If there is any one 
here who does not know what confirmation is, it may be said : 
that it is a religious rite or practice, in which those who 
have been baptized, and are old enough, to understand 
"what a solemn vow, promise, and profession," they made, 
or had made for them in baptism, are called upon to come 
forward, and, in the face of God, of angels, and of men, to 
" pay their vows," to perform their promises,and to renew 
for themselves, their Christian profession. 

1. Some may be disposed to ask, what is the origin^ or 
beginning of this rite, where was this practice first begun ? 
We find its origin, or beginning, in this practice of the 
apostles ; who, as we read in several passages of Scripture, 
laid their hands upon the heads of those who had been bap- 
tized and prayed that they might receive the gift of the Holy 
Ghost. The same practice was continued after the apostles' 
days, when miraculous gifts had ceased, by those who suc- 
ceeded to the apostles' places, as the highest officers, or 
rulers in the church. These rulers or bishops, still, after 
(208) 



CONFIRMATION. 209 

the example of the holy apostles, lay their hands upon 
those who have been baptized, hear their profession of 
Christ, and renewal of their baptismal vows, and pray for 
the increase of the Holy Spirit upon them. 

This is the simple and beautiful rite of confirmation, the 
laying of the hands of the bishops, after the example of the 
apostles, upon those, who, having been baptized in infancy, 
or in after life, wish to "pay their vows," with the prayer for 
each one, " Defend, Lord, this thy servant with thy 
heavenly grace, that he may continue thine for ever, and 
daily increase in thy Efoly Spirit more and more, until he 
come to thy everlasting kingdom. " 

The laying of hands upon those who were blessed, was a 
practice in common use among the Patriarchs, and Prophets 
and good men of the Old Testament times. For example : 
when Joseph brought his two sons, Manasseh, and Ephraim, 
to his father Jacob to bless them, Jacob laid his hands upon 
them. When Moses set Joshua over the tribes of Israel, to 
be their leader and deliverer after his death, he laid his 
hands upon him. — Deut. xxxiv. 9. And indeed, it seems 
to be a very natural and proper way of marking out any 
one, upon whom a particular blessing is pronounced. This 
old and simple custom, was in use also, when our Saviour 
was upon earth, and we find him practising it upon 
several occasions. When young children were brought to 
him for his blessing, we read, that " he put his hands upon 
them, and blessed them." In healing the sick, he did the 
same thing, as we read elsewhere, that " he laid his hands 
upon a few sick folk, and healed them." In the book of 
the "Acts of the Apostles," frequent instances are men- 
tioned of the laying on of hands, in setting apart persons 
to be ministers of the gospel, and also, in praying for the 

18* 






210 SERMON XVII. 






Holy Ghost to be given to those who had been baptized. 
For both these purposes, the practice of " laying on of 
hands," was kept up in the church, after the apostles' days: 
to appoint persons to the sacred ministry, and to pray for 
the gift of the Holy Ghost, upon those who have been bap- 
tized ; not, as has been already said, in his miraculous gifts, 
which had been bestowed upon the first converts, but, in 
his ordinary influences upon the heart, to sanctify it, and 
confirm it in all virtue and godliness of living. 

Such, we believe, to have been the origin of the rite of 
confirmation, as it is now used among us : the laying on of 
hands, being a custom in general use, for bestowing bless- 
ings upon any, the apostles practised it in praying for the 
Holy Ghost, upon the converts (baptized) of their day ; and 
their example was followed by those who came after them, 
except, that they only asked, and only expected that gift 
of the Spirit, promised to all believers, his strengthening 
and sanctifying power. 

And, to this day, after the same example of the apostles, 
our bishops lay their hands upon those, who, having been 
baptized into Christ, desire to renew their vows and pro- 
mises made in baptism, and they pray for the daily increase 
of the Holy Spirit to them, until they reach the kingdom 
of everlasting rest and glory. A practice coming from 
such a source, the example of the holy apostles, it is natu- 
ral to think, ought to be continued in every age, without 
some strong reason against it. 

2. Now in the second place, as to the nature and cha- 
racter of this rite, it is plain to any one, who attends care- 
fully to our service, used in confirmation, and to the manner 
of performing it, that it is purely religious in its character, 
and, that rightly engaged in, it is an act of true spiritual 



CONFIRMATION. 211 

worship. We do not look upon it in any superstitious 
light ; that is, we do not think, that, b j the mere outward 
performance of confirmation, any marvellous effect can be 
produced, nor that the Holy Ghost can be given by any 
mere man. But we consider it simply as a service of 
solemn devotion, in which the highest officer of the church, 
receives baptized believers within her fold, with special 
prayer for the increase of God's spirit upon them, and in 
which the believers renew their promises of faithfulness in 
the service of God, " ratifying and confirming the same." 
In this solemn way, a new and public profession of faith, 
and vow of obedience, is taken of each Christian, to " stab- 
lish, strengthen, and settle" them, as followers of Christ. 

But we must be careful not to make this scriptural and 
devotional rite, more than it really is. Some would have 
it to be a sacrament, on a level with baptism and the Lord's 
supper, which two sacraments were appointed by Christ, 
himself. So the church itself teaches us, in these words : 
" There are two sacraments ordained of Christ our Lord in 
the gospel, that is to say, baptism, and the supper of the 
Lord." And in the same place, we are taught that other 
things called sacraments by some, are not to be counted for 
sacraments of the gospel. So that we consider confirma- 
tion, neither as a sacrament, nor as having any wonderful 
charm, or power, to bestow divine grace upon any, but, as 
a solemn act of religious worship — as a purely religious rite, 
in which baptized believers make public profession of their 
faith in Christ, renew their baptismal vows, and are set 
apart, in the face of the congregation, as separate from 
sinners, and followers of Jesus Christ. 

Whoever is baptized, promises and vows certain things ; 
when infants are baptized, some others, called sponsors, pro- 



212 SERMON XVII. 

mise for them, which promises, when they are old enough 
they are bound to perform themselves. The promises are 
these : 1. to renounce the devil, and all his works, the pomps 
and vanities of this wicked world, and all the sinful lusts of 
the flesh ; 2. to believe all the articles of the Christian faith ; 
and, 3. to keep God's holy will and commandments, and 
walk in the same, all the days of their life. These vows, 
and promises of serving God, are renewed in confirmation, 
in the most solemn manner. And the application of the 
text is to call upon those who have been baptized, to " pay 
their vows," in this religious and scriptural rite. 

3. Having thus far spoken of the origin and character of 
the rite of confirmation, we come now to speak of its fit- 
ness for the end it is intended to serve. If any one has 
promised to pay a sum of money at a certain time, it is 
right and proper, when the time comes, for him who made 
the promise, to come and acknowledge the debt, and if he 
cannot pay the whole at once, to renew his promise or bond, 
that he will strive to pay it all. Or if one man becomes 
the security of another, promising that a debt shall be paid, 
it is right that he who owes the debt, should come himself, 
and pay it, that the other may be released. Now those 
baptized in infancy had promises and vows made for them, 
by those who became their security to God for the payment 
of these vows ; and when these infants come to an age to 
know their duty, it is proper that they should take these 
promises upon themselves, and relieve their sponsors or se- 
curities. So, also, those baptized in more advanced years, 
and having made their vows of obedience and faithfulness 
to God, and of renouncing or forsaking all evil ways, may 
very properly come out, and pay these vows, and ackow- 
ledge themselves bound to do as they have promised. For 



CONFIRMATION. 213 

this purpose, the service of confirmation, as it has been de- 
scribed, seems particularly fitted ; a service in which each 
one is solemnly given to God, to be his for ever, with devout 
prayer for the outpouring of his spirit. 

The fitness of confirmation, is perhaps, most clearly seen 
in the case of those, who, having been baptized in infancy, 
desire when they come to age, to make their own profession, 
and to do themselves, what has been promised for them. 
When parents or guardians of children give them to God 
in baptism, and promise to teach them faithfully the will 
of God, and as far as they can, all things that a Christian 
ought to know and believe to his soul's health, it is hoped 
that such children, when old enough to understand these 
things, will take them upon themselves, and in their own 
persons, do what was undertaken for them ; and it is very 
fit and proper that some public way should be provided, in 
which they may make their profession, and pay their vows. 
Now in what more suitable way could this be done, than by 
this rite of confirmation, a scriptural service of the most 
solemn and impressive character, consisting of acts of reli- 
gious worship, on the part both of him who administers, 
and of those who receive the rite. 

Such being the origin, character and fitness of the rite 
of confirmation, its origin being the practice of the apostles 
as recorded in Scripture ; its character being purely reli- 
gious, and it being so suitable a service for the renewal of 
vows made in baptism, it is certainly well calculated to be 
of real benefit to the souls of all who come to it in the right 
spirit. How many are there, who have, in this very ordi- 
nance felt their souls to be indeed confirmed in the faith, 
and strengthened with might, by the Holy Spirit of God ? 
How many have found it a means of grace, of the greatest 



214 SERMON XVII. 






value to their hearts ? How many have by means of this 
rite, enjoyed the answer to the prayers then offered, that 
God would strengthen them with the Holy Ghost, the Com- 
forter, and daily increase in them his manifold gifts of grace, 
the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of coun- 
sel and ghostly strength, the spirit of knowledge and true 
godliness, and the spirit of God's holy fear, that his fatherly 
hand might ever be over them, and his Holy Spirit might 
ever be with them ? 

We call upon all, therefore, who have been baptized, to 
come, and in this most fit and solemn service, to pledge 
themselves anew, and "pay their vows," unto the Lord. 
And we feel assured, that none who will come aright, will 
go away without finding that it was "good for them to be 
here," and who will not heartily express their own feelings 
in the beautiful words of a hymn, appointed to be used at 
the time of confirmation : — 

L. M. 

0, happy day, that stays my choice 
On thee my Saviour and my God : 

Well may this glowing heart rejoice, 
And tell thy goodness all abroad. 

O happy bond, that seals my vows 

To him who merits all my love ; 
Let cheerful anthems fill his house, 

While to his sacred throne I move. 

'Tis done, the great transaction's done, 
Deign gracious Lord, to make me thine : 

Help me through grace to follow on, 
Glad to confess thy voice divine. 

Here rest my oft divided heart, 

Fix'd on thy God, thy Saviour, rest ; 



CONFIRMATION. 215 

Who with the world would grieve to part, 
When called on angels' food to feast ? 

High heaven that heard that solemn vow, 
That vow renewed shall daily hear, 

'Till in life's latest hour I how, 
And bless in death, a bond so dear. 

Questions. — 1. What is confirmation ? 2. Where was confirmation 
first practised ? 3. What was it called then ? 4. Who else practised 
the laying on of hands, besides the apostles? 5. What else did the 
apostles do, when they laid their hands on believers ? 6. What is 
the character or nature of confirmation ? 7. Is confirmation a sacra- 
ment ? 8. What end is confirmation intended to serve ? 9. Do the 
bishops of our church think' they can give the Holy Ghost ? 



SEEMON XVIII. 

GOD'S WONDROUS LOVE TO SENDERS. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us. — 
1 John iii. 1. 

There is a country far in the east called Persia. Many 
years ago there lived two young men in that country, who 
loved each other as brothers. One of them in some way, 
offended the king, who had him cast into prison, and gave 
orders for him to be put to death. As the day for his death 
drew nigh, he became very anxious once more to see his 
family and friends. At last the other young man, whom 
he so much loved, went to the king and told him, that if he 
would let him go to see his family, he would take his place 
in prison ; and that if he did not return by the day ap- 
pointed for his death, he would die in his stead. The king 
agreed to it, and he was bound and put in prison, to lie 
there as his security, and to die if he did not return. What 
a wonderful act of love was this towards his friend ! Now 
you must remember that it was a friend whom he dearly 
loved, for whom he was ready to die. But God showed his 
love for us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died 
for us. " Not that we loved God, but that he loved us and 
gave his Son to die for us." And just think what a death 
(216) 



, 



god's wondrous love to sinners. 217 

it was. There is no other death I ever heard of like it. 
So much innocence, so much shame, and sorrow, and suf- 
fering. Look at that Lamb of God on the cross ; he is 
treated as if he had done some great crime ; he hangs where 
a murderer ought to have hung. Six long hours does he 
hang in all the pangs of crucifixion ; laughed at, mocked, 
and treated with scorn by his enemies, while his friends, few 
and weak, dare not come near to help him. And there he 
dies without a murmur, without an angry look, while his 
blood falls, drop by drop, for the sins of the whole world. 
In the midst of all this torture, hear him crying to heaven, 
" Father forgive them, they know not what they do." This 
is wonderful love indeed. I love to stand and think of it. 
I love to shut my eyes against every thing else, until my 
heart gets full of love to God, then I love to go and tell to 
sinners round, that God is love, and say to them, " behold 
what manner of love, the Father hath bestowed on us." 

Let us turn our thoughts, a little while, away from the 
world and ourselves, to consider this wondrous love of God 
to us poor sinners. 

I. The love of the Father ! Who can tell what it is ? 
It is too deep, too high, too wide for man to measure. I 
once stood on the ocean's shore, I looked at its mighty 
waves, and listened to its solemn roar. I thought of the 
thousands of ships tossed *on its breast, of the myriads of 
animals that dwell in its depths, until I was almost be- 
wildered. I wanted to know what was going on in its dark 
depths, and what the rich treasures hid there, but it was 
too deep for me. And while I was thinking, I turned my 
eyes to the ground, and saw thousands of shells and pebbles 
of different colours and forms. Then I said to myself, I 
do not know much of the sea, but these little shells, cast up 

19 



218 SERMON XVIII. 

here by the waves, teach me that there are still richex 
things in it yet. So it is with the love of God the Father 
for us. We cannot dive down into its ocean depths, and 
bring up all its treasures to your view, but we can point 
you to some of the signs of that love around you. We can 
say to you, "behold the Lamb of God;" and tell you, that 
" God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten 
Son, that whosoever believeth in him might not perish, but 
have everlasting life." 

Suppose you were to go into a court of justice; you see 
the judge upon the bench; a prisoner stands at the bar, on 
trial for his life; the jury sits in solemn silence; presently 
they come back from their room and declare the man to be 
guilty. The judge stands up and tells him he must die. 
But look again at that judge. His heart is full of pity, and 
his face dark with sorrow, he thinks of the unhappy family 
of the guilty man, and the heavy punishment he is to bear; 
yet he cannot pardon him, and at the same time, maintain 
his government. But, by his 3ide sits his only son, whom 
he loves as he does himself. He says to the officer, take my 
son, bind him, and lead him out to death, and let his bleed- 
ing body show how I hate sin, and how I love the sinner. 
This is something like the love of God the Father for us 
sinners. And if this could take place, who could doubt 
that that judge loved the guilty man and wished to save him? 
So if God gave his own son to die for us, who can doubt his 
wondrous love to us, guilty rebels as we are against his 
throne ? 

II. This love of the Father is free ; we have never done 
any thing to cause God to love us, it began in his own holy 
bosom as soon as he created us. We can no more find out 
a reason for such love, than we can find out when eternity 



god's wondrous love to sinners. 219 

began. Had we owned millions of worlds, that would have 
been no price to pay for it. He thought of us, as a father 
thinks of his children. He knew that we were fallen and 
wicked beings, yet he remembered us in mercy; his bosom 
was moved with tenderness and love when he saw our 
wretched state, and he sent his own son freely to redeem 
us from the power of Satan. 

Should you see a father hand the deadly rifle to his only 
son, and hear him say, my son, go into the battle field, and 
either save your country, or die in its defence, you could 
not help feeling that that man loved his country. All that 
a man has, he will give to save the life of his son, and 
when he gives up that son freely for any cause, he has 
shown the highest love he could for that cause. This is 
the way that God the Father loves us. His love is free, he 
offers it to us without money and without price. He does 
not tell us to pay it with long prayers and painful fasting. 
He tells us to come with a broken and contrite heart, " the 
Spirit and the Bride say, Come, and let him that heareth 
say, Come, and let him that is athirst come, and whosoever 
will, let him take the water of life freely." 

III. The love of the Father for us, was a costly love. 
The Bible calls it the "unsearchable riches of Christ," and 
St. Paul says, "ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor.'' 
And think what God gave up to save us sinners. When 
we had rebelled against him, he might have turned away 
from us for ever, and found happiness among the angels of 
his own kingdom. But when he saw our misery, his heart 
melted towards us, and he said, "how can I give thee up V 
But what must he do to save us ? he saw that nothing short 
of the blood of his own son could do this. He saw that to 



220 sermon xvin. 

give him up, would cost him more than all the world, and 
all men living in it, were worth. 



' wondrous love to bleed and die, 
To bear the cross and shame, 

That guilty sinners such as I, 
Might plead his gracious name." 






He paid a price for our salvation, which not all other 
beings on earth, or in heaven could have paid. We can 
think of it, and talk of it, but none but God himself, can 
understand it. This is love, whose riches, pass all under- 
standing. 

IV. The love of the Father for us, is full of strength and 
tenderness. You know how strong and tender is the love 
of the mother for her children. And yet thetenderest mother 
that ever lived, never felt for her suffering child, as God 
feels for us suffering sinners. A great city was once 
stormed by an army of men, who had determined to stand 
at its gates, until the inhabitants of the city had all died 
of hunger. It was a terrible army, and none could pass in 
or out of the walls of the city. Many weeks passed away, 
and nearly every thing in the city was eaten up, hundreds 
were dying of hunger. There was one poor family, a man, 
his wife, and three children. The mother loved her children, 
as she loved her life, the last morsel they had was gone, 
and death, by starvation, stared them in the face. At a late 
hour at night, the father said to the mother, I have some- 
thing to talk to you about, it is dreadful to think of, and I 
have not closed my eyes to-night because of it ; but some- 
thing must be done or we shall all soon die with hunger. Is it 
not better that one die, than all ? Had we not better put 
one of the little children to death, to be eaten, that the 



god's wondrous love to sinners. 221 

lives of the rest of us may be saved ? 0, it is horrible to 
think of, but what else can we do. After a long talk, the 
mother agreed to it? and then came the time of trial? then 
it was to be decided which of the three children should die. 
The father said, shall we take little Charles, the eldest? 
0, said the mother, I have nursed him so long, and with so 
much care in all his sickness, that my heart is bound up in 
him. Then, said the father, shall we take little Mary, our 
only daughter? No, said the mother, Mary is my only 
help, she sits with me all day, and is company for me when 
you are away. Then, said the father, shall we give up our 
little babe, just beginning to run about and to prattle ? 0, 
how can I give up my little darling, said the mother, he is 
the tenderest of all our children, and so much like his father. 
I cannot give up my children, rather let me die, than part 
with them. Here, then, you see that this mother could not 
consent to give up one of her three children, even to save 
her own life. Now just think how God has loved us. He 
had but one beloved son, he loved him more tenderly than 
that mother, could love her children. There was nothing to 
compel him to give up that son, yet he gave him up freely, 
to die that we might live. Well may we say, " Behold what 
manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us!" 

V. The love of the Father to us is abundant, A wicked 
son once wandered away from his father, and went into a 
distant land ; there he spent his money in intemperance, 
and riotous living. Then a famine came on, and he began to 
be in want ; he went and hired himself to a citizen of that 
country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine ; there 
he would have been glad to satisfy his hunger, with the 
husks that fell from the swine's mouth. He was brought to 
see his wretched condition ; he remembered his father's large 

19* 



222 sermon xvin. 

and abundant house. He saw that to stay where he was, 
would be to die with hunger. At last he said to himself, " I 
will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father 
I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no 
more worthy to be called thy son ; make me as one of thy 
hired servants." And he arose and came to his father ; and 
when his father saw him a great way off, he ran and fell 
on his neck, and kissed him. " Then said the father to 
his servants, bring forth the best robe and put it on him, 
and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet." Here 
you see the father gave him not only what he needed ; he 
loaded him with comforts, and adorned him with gold. 
Nothing was thought too good for that returning prodigal. 
All the house was to be at his command, and for his plea- 
sure. So rejoiced was that tender hearted father at the re- 
turn of his son, that he was ready to give him any blessing. 
Just so it is with the love of God, whenever a sinner returns 
to him from the ways of sin. The Bible tells us, " no good 
thing will he withhold from them that love him." All 
things are theirs ; there is no telling the unsearchable riches 
of a soul that has gone back to God through Christ. How- 
ever poor or ignorant the man may be, that soul has " ex- 
ceeding abundantly above all that it can ask or think." 
There are no riches of this earth like the riches of that soul. 
There are no figures here to calculate it with. You must go 
out of this narrow earth, and pass beyond the darkness of 
death and the grave, and enter the unbounded field of eter- 
nity's light and love, before you can learn what are the 
riches and the glory of a soul hid with Christ in God. 
Only think now, that all this vast treasure, God has freely 
and joyfully given to us in Christ Jesus. He found us 
poor, helpless, wretched and starving ; he took us to him- 



god's wondrous love to sinners. 223 

self, clothed us, forgave us, and made us rich and happy 
as the angels around his throne. Surely we may stand in 
wonder and gratitude, and say, " Behold what manner of 
love, the Father hath bestowed on us !" 

VI. Once more look at the extent of the Father's love 
for us. Where is the sinner he does not love ? Where is 
the sinner, against whom he shuts up the door of his mercy ? 
There are thousands who hate him. Did he ever turn one 
dff unblessed ? No, not one. With his last breath he 
prayed for his murderers. The world is always moving on 
in wickedness. Does he ever turn his heart away from it ? 
No, never. There is not a vile sinner on the wide earth, 
whom he does not pity and love. See how he bears withyour 
sins, and the sins of all men. See how he sends his rain 
and sunshine, and all his benefits upon us. You know the 
sun shines every where, and all on the earth feel its warmth, 
and see its light. So with the love of God ; it is shed upon 
all men. Those who live nearest to him, enjoy the highest 
measure of that love, and those who live far away, are not 
shut out from its blessings. 

My friends, do yoa know any thing of this love ? Can 
you say in truth, that you love God in return ? He tells 
you how you may know that you love him, and how you 
may show to the world that you love him. He says, " if 
ye love me, keep my commandments." He counts nothing 
as love, which does not show itself, in acts of obedience to 
his laws. " He that loveth me not," he says, " keepeth not 
my sayings." Should one of your fellow-servants tell you 
that he loved his master, and yet would not do his master's 
work, nor care for his interest, could you really believe 
that he loved him ? Should your own son tell you that he 
loved you, and yet would not honour and obey you, could 



224 SERMON XVIII. 

you believe him ? Now, if you would show that you love 
God, you must obey his commands, you must do his will. 
If you live in any sin, you may know that you do not love 
God, as you ought. He says, "he that loveth me not, 
keepeth not my sayings." My friends, if God were a hard 
master, it would be a different thing, but you know that he 
is no tyrant. He is good and gracious, a Father, full of 
mercy. When you stand up against him, you stand up 
against the richest love. You are like a son drawing a 
sword, to plunge it to the heart of your father. You are 
like a man trampling upon the affections of the mother that 
nursed him, and breaking jier heart, and then mocking at 
her sorrows. 0, what a hard rock your heart must be, if 
it has no feeling of love towards such a God. Look at him 
on Calvary, hanging, and bleeding, and dying, and tell me, 
can you help saying with tears of gratitude, " Behold what 
manner of love, the Father hath bestowed on us." 

CM. 

Plunged in a gulf of dark despair, 

We wretched sinners lay, 
"Without one cheering beam of hope, 

Or spark of glimmering day. 

With pitying eyes, the Prince of grace, 

Beheld our helpless grief; 
He saw, and 0, amazing love ! 

He ran to our relief. 

Down from the shining seats above 

With joyful haste he fled, 
Entered the grave in mortal flesh, 

And dwelt among the dead. 



god's wondrous love to sinners. 225 

0. for this love, let rocks and hills 

Their lasting silence break, 
And all harmonious human tongues 

The Saviour's praises speak. 

Questions. — 1. What does this test tell us about ? 2. Can any of us 
know how much God loves us? 3. Can we do any thing to buy his 
love ? 4. How then did we get this love ? 5. What did God's love 
for us cost him ? 6. Must that love be very strong and tender ? 
7. Does any mother love her children as God loves us ? 8. Is there 
enough in God's love, to save the whole world ? 9. Does God lovs 
all sinners ? 10 Who then, is the sinner's best friend I 



SERMON XIX. 

WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEACH US. 






BY THE REV. C. K. NELSON, OF THE DIOCESE OF MARYLAND. 

Search the Scriptures. — John v. 39. 

Religion, my dear friends, is, to poor sinners like you 
and I, the most important thing that we can either obtain 
or desire. Now, the only way we can learn what religion 
is, and all about it, is for God to tell us. For religion is 
about things that belong to God, and heaven, and hell, and 
eternity, and the soul. Now, none of us have ever seen 
God, and, therefore, we cannot tell what he is, unless he 
tell us all about himself. None of us have ever been to 
heaven or hell, and, therefore, can know nothing about 
them, unless God tell us. None of us have any idea of 
what eternity is, and must always go on in this dreadful 
uncertainty, unless God, who only knows, tell us all about.it. 

None of us know what the soul is — what shall* become 
of it after the body crumbles into dust, unless God come to 
us in some way or other, and tell us all about it. Now, 
you see, brethren, in what an awful state our poor souls 
would have been, if God had left us in ignorance of reli- 
gion. Suppose that any one of you had lost yourself in 
some deep, dark woods, and could not tell where the path 
(226) 



WHAT THE SCKIPTURES TEACH US. 227 

was — suppose that the sun was almost down, and night was 
coming on as fast as it could — suppose that you heard some 
cruel wild beasts roaring around, and only waiting till it was 
night, to jump on you and tear you to pieces. Oh ! what 
an awful state you would be in ! You would tremble from 
head to foot. You would cry out in dreadful fear, " Oh ! 
for some one just to tell me the road, and put me back into 
the right path!" Suppose that, just at this moment, you 
were to see a kind friend coming towards you, who knew all 
about the way. Oh ! it would rejoice your heart. Oh ! 
how you would run up to him and throw your arms around 
his neck, and tell him how glad you were to see him, and 
that he had saved your life. Oh ! with what an attentive 
ear you would listen to him as he told you all about the 
path. You would be in no danger of going to sleep while 
he was talking to you. Oh ! brethren, this is just the state 
tf e were all in. We were wandering in the deep, dark wil- 
derness of sin. The night of death was fast coming on. 
The devil, like a roaririg lion, was just at hand, ready to 
devour us as soon as the night of death overtook us ; when, 
blessed be God, a kind friend was seen coming towards us, 
with a book in his hand full of directions about the way. 
Oh ! don't you want to know who that dear friend is, 
and what that book is ? That friend is Jesus, the Saviour 
of sinners. But, before he could give us the book, he had 
to die for us. He had to be nailed to the cruel cross, and 
have his hands and feet pierced with the rugged nails, and 
his head torn with a crown of thorns. The book that con- 
tains all the directions about the way of life, is the Bible. 
It is so plain that the wayfaring man, though a fool, shall 
not err therein. It was written for the poor especially, and 
therefore Jesus, our God and Saviour, made it so plain, 



228 SERMON XIX. 

that the very poorest and humblest among you can under- 
stand those parts of it that are most important. Oh ! don't 
you want to know more and more about this book, and what 
you must do in order that you may do this? Then listen to 
me, brethren, as for your souls, and I will tell you. Of 
course, you can't know what the Bible tells you about the 
way to heaven, unless you know what is in it. Now, God 
knew this as well or better than we do, and, therefore, in 
this very book, called the Scriptures, he has told us to 
"Search the Scriptures." Now, brethren, do you ask me 
how you are to search the Scriptures, seeing that you can- 
not read ? Now it is not necessary that you should know 
how to read in order to search the Scriptures. Suppose 
that there were two men, the one could see, and could read 
the Bible, the other was stone blind, and of course could 
not read a word. You will see at once that the man who 
could see, could search the Scriptures. But you ask me, 
how could the blind man do this ? Now, suppose that the 
poor blind man had a kind friend — say his master or mis- 
tress — who could read the whole Bible to him, word for 
word. Could not he search the Scriptures as s they went 
along reading to him ? Could not he take in every word, 
and treasure it up in his heart ? Could not he search the 
Scriptures in this way, just as well as the man that could 
see ? So you see that it is not necessary that you should 
know how to read in order to search the Scriptures. You 
can search them, that is, find out what is in them, by hear- 
ing them read, just as well as by reading them. But do 
you tell me that you have none to read to you the book of 
the way of life. Oh ! brethren, think again. Don't your 
master or mistress read this book every morning and even- 
ing at prayers ? Don't your minister read it at church 



WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEACH US. 229 

every Sunday ? Can't you go there and search the Scrip- 
tures ? Have you no young master or mistress who would 
read the Bible to you ? Have you ever asked them ? I 
remember, when I was a boy, that my old mammy used to 
get me to go into her house, and read the Bible to her 
every morning. She would sit down on her little low stool 
beside me, and, while I read, she would search the Scrip- 
tures. Brethren, God tells you to search the Scriptures, 
and he would not do so unless you could. We fear that 
the reason why you do not search the Scriptures is, because 
you don't care about knowing what is in the Bible. If you 
did, you would soon find some one to read it to you. Sup- 
pose you were in the dark woods I told you about, expect- 
ing every moment to be devoured by some ravenous beast, 
and you were to meet a man that had a book that told all 
about the way, would you not run to him and ask him to 
tell you all about it ? Or suppose, while wandering about 
in the woods, you were to come across this book, and soon 
after to meet a man who could read it, though you could 
not yourself ; would you not run to him and beg him to 
read it to you ? You would not let him off until he would 
agree to read it to you. Now the Bible is the only book that 
can tell us how to get out of the wilderness of sin, and find 
the road that leads to heaven. Oh ! brethren, it is because 
you don't feel that you- are lost, that you don't care about 
having the book of the way of life read to you. Oh ! if 
you only felt that you were lost, you would not rest until 
you found some one that would read you all about the way. 
Oh ! that God would visit your hearts with the mighty 
power of his Holy Spirit, and make you feel that you are 
lost, and then, and not until then, will you search for the 
Way of life. But, perhaps, you will ask if there ain't som* 

20 



230 SERMON XIX. 

other way of finding out the road to Heaven. Perhaps 
you will ask me if a man can not find out the way, from 
dreams and visions. Now dreams may deceive us, but the 
book of the living God can not. Visions may come from 
the old devil, who is a liar from the beginning, or from our 
own hearts, which are deceitful above all things, and thus 
mislead us. But God's own word can not deceive us. I 
remember to have heard of a woman, who dreamt that her 
husband was her stumbling block in the way to heaven, and 
that she could not get there so long as he was in the way. 
So the next morning, she soon found out a way of getting 
rid of him, by putting him to death. Do you think that 
this dream could have come from God ? But this woman 
did. So you see that dreams may deceive, and therefore, 
are not to be depended on. Oh, brethren, so long as dreams 
and visions agree exactly with the word of God, there may 
be no danger in trusting them. But, whenever they point 
out a different way from what the Bible does, they lead to 
hell and eternal damnation. But even if they do some- 
times show us the right way, is it not better to stick to the 
Bible, that always does. Suppose you were travelling, and 
came to a place where there were two roads — both of them 
lead to the place you are going to. But one of them leads 
through the woods I told you about, where there is the 
greatest danger of getting lost, so that not one traveller in a 
hundred, gets through safely. The other, is i fine plain 
open road, going straight to the place, in which a man can 
not get lost, unless he goes out of it on purpose. What road 
would you take ? Would you take the one that you would 
be almost sure to get lost in, or the one where it would be 
utterly impossible to get lost. Would you stop for a mo- 
ment to think about which you would take ? Now the Bible 



WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEACH US. 231 

is the plain straight road. It will carry you safe home to 
heaven, if you stick to it. This is the way, we come this 
day, to point out to you. God tells you in his Word, to 
search for this way, that every soul that has ever reached 
heaven, has travelled along. Remember, dear brethren, 
that it is God, and not man, that calls upon you to search 
the Scriptures. So that to neglect to do this, is to disobey 
the great God of Heaven and earth, and to run the most 
awful risk of eternal damnation. 

1. In searching the Scriptures, we shall find who, and 
what God is. God is a Spirit. "We cannot see him, but 
he can see us. His eyes are in every place, beholding the 
evil and the good. He looketh to the ends of the earth, 
and seeth under the whole heavens. Darkness hideth not 
from him. The darkness and the light to him are both 
alike. He knoweth what is in the darkness — all things are 
naked unto him, with whom we have to do. God knoweth 
all things. He, only, knoweth the hearts of the children 
of men. He searcheth the heart, and trieth the reins. God 
is wise in heart, and mighty in wisdom. The great, the 
mighty God, the Lord of Hosts, is his name. There is 
nothing too hard for God — with him, nothing is impossible. 
The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his 
works. A God of truth without iniquity, just and right- 
eous is he. He is a holy God, a jealous God. The Lord 
God, merciful and gracious, long suffering and abundant in 
goodness and truth. But this is not all we learn from the 
same Scriptures, that this God is the friend of the Chris- 
tian, but the enemy of the ungodly and sinner. That he 
careth for those who love him. That he shall make all 
things work together for their good — but that he is angry 
with the wicked every day. That the wrath of God abideth 



232 SERMON XIX. 

upon the wicked. That God will turn the wicked into hell, 
and all the people that forget God. 

2. In searching the Scriptures, we learn what heaven is, 
and what hell is — we learn that heaven is the place where 
God especially dwells — where Jesus the blessed Saviour 
is — where angels and sainted spirits are united in one great 
company. We read in the same Scriptures, of the golden 
streets of the New Jerusalem — of the golden harps, and 
white robes, and bright crowns of the saints of heaven. It 
is heaven that contains those things that eye hath not seen, 
nor ear heard, nor entered into the heart of man to con- 
ceive. It is there that the wicked shall cease from trou- 
bling, and the weary are at rest. It is there that we shall 
dwell in those mansions that Christ hath gone before to 
prepare for those that love him. It is there that we shall 
live in a temple, of which God and the Lamb are the light 
thereof. There shall be no sickness, nor death, nor weep- 
ing there, for God shall wipe away all tears from all faces. 
There shall be no night there. There we shall lie down in 
green pastures, and walk beside the still waters. "After 
this, I beheld, and lo, a great multitude which no man could 
number, of all nations, and kindreds, and tongues, stood 
before the throne and the Lamb, clothed with white robes, 
and palms in their hands ; and cried with a loud voice, sal- 
vation unto our God, who sitteth upon the throne, and unto 
the Lamb. And all the angels stood round about the 
throne, and about the elders, and the four beasts, and fell 
before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, say- 
ing, Amen. Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and power, 
and might, be unto our God, for ever and ever, Amen. 
And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, what are 
these, which are arrayed in white robes ? And whence 



WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEACH US. 233 

came they ? And I said unto him, sir, thou knowest. And 
he said unto me, these are they which came out of great 
tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them 
white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before 
the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his tem- 
ple, and he that sitteth on the throne, shall dwell among 
them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, 
neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the 
Lamb which is in the midst of the throne, shall feed them, 
and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters, and 
God shall wipe away all tears .from their eyes." 

3. We learn that hell is the place where devils and 
damned spirits dwell — where the worm dieth not, and the 
fire is not quenched ; where shall be weeping and gnash- 
ing of teeth for ever ; where sin, and darkness, and death, 
reign for ever and ever ; where hope and peace can never 
come ; that it is the lake that burneth with fire and brim- 
stone, the smoke of whose torments ascendeth up for ever 
and ever. In searching the Scriptures, we learn what the 
soul is ; what it is worth ; what shall become of it in eter- 
nity. We learn that the soul is our inner man — that the 
body is but the house in which our spirit lives. Now you 
know that the house in which one lives, may be entirely 
destroyed — burnt down to the ground, and yet he who lives 
in it, may get out of it, and escape unhurt. 

Just so when the body is destroyed, does the soul leave 
the body. The body then returns to the dust from which 
it was taken, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. 
Any man may kill the body, but God alone can kill the 
soul. We learn that it is the soul that sinneth. Prom 
this inner man proceed evil thoughts, adulteries* fornica- 
tions, and all manner of sin and uncleanness. The 

20* 



234 SERMON XIX. 

soul is that which is to be kept with all diligence, for upon 
it, depends eternal life and eternal death. It is the soul 
that rules and directs the body. It is the soul that thinks 
and makes the body just what it pleaseth. The soul is the 
master, the body is the servant. The Bible tells us what 
the soul is worth. It tells us that you may take the whole 
world and put it on one side, and the soul on the other, and 
that the soul is worth more than the whole. It tells us that 
we may go over the whole world and see how large it is, 
and how rich it is — how many great houses and cities, and 
how much wealth and splendor there is in it, and put them 
all together, and then it asks — What shall it profit a man, 
if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? This is 
the reason why the soul is worth more than all things be- 
sides. It shall live for ever. 

Towns, and cities, and fine houses, shall be burned up 
with fire. The moth shall destroy the richest clothing. The 
rust shall consume the finest gold. Proud man shall pass 
away as the morning cloud, and the early dew. But the 
soul shall live for ever. It is this that makes the soul so 
precious. It shall live for ever. When millions, and mil- 
lions, and millions of years have rolled around, the soul, 
shall be as young as ever — solemn thought. Our souls 
shall live for ever. But the Bible also teaches us what is to 
become of the soul in eternity. Brethren, suppose that we 
knew that our souls were to live for ever. Suppose we 
knew that they were worth more than all the world besides, 
and yet, had no idea of what would become of them after 
these bodies of ours had returned to dust. What wretched 
creatures we should be. With fear and trembling we would 
draw near the grave. We would be just like tl^e man who 
is compelled to go on a journey, and to take a certain road, 



WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEAOH US. 235 

leading through a deep dark woods. He enters upon the 
road — but does not know where the road leads to — whether 
it will lead him all at once down some awful precipice, or 
end in some deep pool of water. But, blessed be God, he 
has not left us in this darkness. He has told us in his own 
Word, that can not lie, precisely what shall become of us. 
He has told us that heaven or hell shall be the everlasting 
abode of each one of us. But he has not left us uncertain 
as to which it shall be. He has told us who of us shall 
enter heaven, and who shall be cast into hell. If he had 
gone around the whole earthls population, and had told 
each one by name which shall be his eternal home, it could 
not be more certain. He has told us, that he that be- 
lieveth shall be saved ; that he that calleth on the name 
of the Lord shall be saved. He has told us that there is no 
condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. He has 
told us that those who are in Christ Jesus, are new crea- 
tures ? that those are new creatures, from whom old 
things are passed away, and with whom all things are new. 
He has told us that those who persevere unto the end, in 
faith, hope, and love, shall win the crown that fadeth not 
away. On the other hand, he has told us that " he that 
believeth not, shall be damned ; that there is no peace to 
the wicked ; that the wicked shall be turned into hell, and 
all the people that forget God ; upon the wicked shall God 
rain snares, fire, and brimstone, the fearful, and abominable, 
and unbelieving, and murderers, and whoremongers, and 
sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their por- 
tion in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone ; with- 
out holiness no man shall see the Lord ; without (that is 
outside of the door of heaven) are dogs, and sorcerers, and 
whoremongers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and, 



236 SERMON XIX. 

maketh a lie ; there shall in no wise enter into heaven, any 
thing that defileth."' 

And now, brethren, I desire as God's messenger, whom 
he hath sent unto you, to impress these things upon your 
hearts and consciences. We have seen who God is ; that he 
is a mighty God, and terrible ; that he is a consuming fire ; 
that he is a jealous God, who will not look upon sin with 
allowance. We have seen that he is the Almighty, and all 
merciful friend of the believer, but the terrible avenger of 
the unbeliever. Now the Bible teaches you how you may 
make him your friend. The same blessed book tells you 
how you may make heaven your evelasting home. We have 
seen that the soul must live for ever ; that it is worth ten 
thousand worlds ; that heaven or hell must be its home for 
ever. I would ask you, brethren, if such a book is not 
worth reading. Oh, listen to God speaking in the book 
just one moment longer, " Come ye blessed of my Father, 
receive the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation 
of the world." These words will be spoken at the day of 
judgment, to the Christian. But, Oh, sinner, hear from 
this same book, what God will say unto thee at that hour, 
unless you repent before it be too late. "Depart ye 
cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his 
angels." 

CM. 

Jesus, my Saviour and my Lord, 
To thee I lift mine eyes ; 

Teach and instruct me by thy word, 
And make me truly wise. 

Make me to know and understand 

Thy whole revealed will ; 
Fain would I learn to comprehend 

Thy love more clearly still. 



WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEACH US. 237 

Help me to hear thy gospel o'er 

With ever new delight : 
Help me to love its author more ; 

To seek thee day and night. 

0, let it purify my heart, 

And guide me all my days ; 
Its wonders, Lord, to me impart, 

And thou shalt have the praise. 

Questions. — 1. What is the most important thing to sinners ? 
2., Where do we learn what our souls are worth? 3. What would 
we have been without the Bible' ? 4. Who gave us the Bible ? 5. Can 
you, who can not read, search the Scriptures ? 6. What will you 
learn there about God ? 7. What will you learn about heaven ? 8. 
What will you learn about hell? 9. Will your soul die with your 
body? 10. Has God told us who shall enter heaven? 11. What 
will became of the impenitent sinner in judgment ? 



SERMON XX. 

THE ADVANTAGES OF HEARING GOD'S 
WORD. 

BY THE EEV. C. K. NELSON, OF THE DIOCESE OF MARYLAND. 

So tiitn faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of 
God.— Romans, x. 17. 

If you listened, my dear brethren, with attention to the 
sermon which I preached to you on last Sunday, you will 
remember, that I then urged upon you with all earnestness, 
the duty of searching the Scriptures. Because, from the 
Scriptures alone, can we learn any thing about God — 
Christ — the soul — heaven and hell. You will remember 
that I told you at the same time, that, without being able 
to read a word, you could search them by hearing them 
read. For to search them, means nothing more than to 
find out what is in them ; and this you can do perfectly 
well by listening to them. Now God tells us this in the 
words of the text. Just listen to them, dear brethren, for 
they are God's words, not mine. iC So then faith cometh 
by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Here God, 
who can not lie, tells us that faith cometh by hearing the 
Scriptures preached or read. God, of course, does not say, 
that faith never comes by reading the Scriptures. But he 
does not say in the text, that it comes by reading them, but 
(238) 



THE ADVANTAGES OE HEARING GOD'S WORD. 239 

by hearing them read. And therefore, though you should 
be stone blind, and could only have the Scriptures read 
unto you, you might have faith. God has so especially con- 
nected the salvation of sinners with the preaching of the 
gospel, that there is more hope from hearing it from the 
mouth of those appointed to preach it or teach it unto us, 
than from reading it ourselves. 

In the words of the text, God tells us of something that 
comes by hearing the Scriptures preached or read ; with- 
out which no poor sinner could be saved. This something 
is faith. You can't hear' the Bible read, without feeling 
that God makes very much of faith. This is the work of 
God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. He that 
believeth is not condemned ; but he that believeth not, is 
condemned already, because he hath not believed in the 
only begotten son of God. He that believeth, and is bap- 
tized, shall be saved ; but he that believeth not, shall be 
damned. When the poor trembling sinner cries out, what 
shall I dp to be saved? the answer given is, believe in the 
Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. And if any 
poor trembling sinner in this house, at this time, were to 
throw himself at my feet, and were to cry out in the lan- 
guage of earnest inquiry, " Oh, sir, what shall I do to be 
saved ; " the only answer I could give him is — and, blessed 
be God, it is answer enough — believe in the Lord Jesus 
Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Since faith is of such 
value, how anxious should we be to know, in the first place, 
what it is, and then, how we are to get it.. Oh, brethren, 
let us be sure that we are right here, for if we are wrong 
here, we are wrong every where. Let us be sure that we 
know what faith is, for if we are deceived as to what faith 
really is, we may think that we have it, and that it is car- 



240 SERMON XX. 

rying us to heaven, while, that which we have, that looks 
something like faith — not being the real faith, is sinking us 
to hell every day that we live. You would not be uncertain 
about any thing that you thought of importance to your 
bodies. If you were going somewhere, and wanted a pass, 
and were to come to some one to give it to you, you would 
be very anxious to know whether all about it was right or 
not. You would want to know whether it had the right 
name, and right date to it, and all. Because you know 
that if it is a true pass, it will take you safely to the place 
you want to go to — but that if there is any thing wrong 
about it, it may get you a severe punishment. Now is it 
right, to be more anxious about your body than your soul ? 
Ought you to be more afraid of that which will hurt your 
body for a few moments, than of that which will hurt your 
soul for ever and ever ? Now you ought to be more anxious 
to know whether you have the true faith — for if you have 
the true faith, it is leading you to heaven — but if you have 
the wrong faith, it is carrying you to hell. How many 
persons talk much about faith, who still do not know what 
it really is. 

Let us learn from God's own word, that can not deceive, 
what this so precious faith is. But let us in the first place 
learn from the same book what it is not. And then shall 
we, by the gracious help of God, be able to tell the true 
from the false faith, so that we may be able to know cer- 
tainly whether we have that passport which will give us 
admittance at the gate of the Heavenly Jerusalem. Faith 
means belief. When I say that I have faith in any one, 
you know at once what I mean by it — you know that I 
mean I believe m him — that I can trust him. Suppose 
for instance, that you knew me well — knew that I am 



THE ADVANTAGES OF HEARING GOD'S WORD. 241 

honest, and always speak the truth. Now whatever I tell 
you, you will receive as truth. Now this receiving as truth 
what I tell you, is faith. This is true faith in me. But 
you may have a sort of faith in me, which is not genuine 
faith. One of you has a garden — the time comes for 
breaking it up, and sowing and planting your seed. But 
you have done not a stroke of work upon it. I come to 
you, and tell you that it is very late to be doing nothing 
about it, and that it will soon be too late. Now you listen 
to me. You think that I am partly right — but still you 
think that you may continue to put off working upon it, 
and that there will yet be time enough. Now this is not. 
having faith in me. If you had full faith in me, you would 
go to work as soon as I told you that it was high time that 
you were doing so. This is having only half faith in me. 
Now just these kinds of faith you may have in God. You 
may have full faith in him — take him at his word — believe 
whatever he tells you, and do whatever he commands you ; 
or you may have only a halfway faith in him. Now let us 
see from the word of God, that this sort of belief is not 
tiue faith. God tells you that — now is the accepted time, 
now is the day of salvation. You believe that you are a 
poor sinner, and must get this salvation, or be lost. But 
you do not believe, that to-day — the time which God says, 
is the only time, is the right time. Now this is just the 
sort of faith which Felix, the drunkard, and adulterer, of 
whom the Bible tells us had, wh§n Paul was reasoning with 
him about holiness, temperance, and a judgment to come. 
He trembled. That is, he had faith enough to make him 
tremble, and yet not having the true faith, he said to Paul, 
the preacher, Go thy way for this time ; when I have a 
convenient season, I will call for thee. This sort of faith 

21 



242 SERMON XX. 

many of you have. For when God's minister, clothed with 
the power of the Spirit, warns you of your sins and wicked- 
nesses, and tells you that the awful judgment day is fast ap- 
proaching, you tremble. But this is all. Like Felix, you 
say, Go thy way for this time. This cannot be the true faith, 
for the very devils in hell, believe — aye, and tremble, too. 
Again, you may have so much faith in God, as to be almost 
persuaded to be Christians. You become alarmed by the 
preaching of your minister, or by the reading of God's 
word, by sickness or death, or by the voice of conscience, 
and the warnings of the Spirit, and you are almost per- 
suaded to be a Christian. You pray some ; you listen to 
God's word for a time ; you seem for a while to be really 
anxious for your soul ; you weep under the preaching of 
the gospel ; you attend the church and the prayer meeting. 
But, being only almost, and not altogether persuaded, you 
soon give up the work of your soul's salvation, and return 
to your ungodly ways, as the dog to his vomit, and the hog 
to his wallowing in the mire. This is just the sort of faith 
which the young man whom Jesus loved, and King Agrippa, 
had. The young man had so much faith, that he not only 
came to Christ, but came running, showing thereby, that 
he was in earnest. He was so interesting, that the Bible 
tells us, that when Jesus looked upon him, he loved him. 
Yet being only almost persuaded to be a Christian — when 
Christ told him that he must take up his cross, and follow 
him — and his cross was td give to the poor of his riches — 
he went away sorrowful — sorry that he could not be the 
child of God on easier terms. Not having the true faith, 
he turned his back upon his Saviour, and went away among 
his enemies, and continued to tread the downward road, 
that leads to death. King Agrippa, too, when Paul was 






THE ADVANTAGES OF HEARING GOD'S WORD. 243 

preaching to him, was almost persuaded to be a Christian, 
but as far as we know, he went down to hell only almost a 
Christian. For he who is only almost a Christian, can 
never enter in by the door. God will have no almost 
Christians there. Now, dear brethren, if you have no better 
faith than this, it will not stand the trial of the judgment. 
And I fear that not a few of my hearers are in this half- 
way state. They have faith enough to make them come 
sometimes to Christ, and cry out, good Master, what shall 
I do to inherit eternal life. But, when Christ tells them 
that if they would be his true disciples, they must give up 
their darling lusts, and besetting sins ; — when he tells the 
dram lover that he must give up his dram bottle — and the 
adulterous man, that he must give up the wife of another 
man, and return to his own ; and the dishonest man, that 
he must keep his hands from picking and stealing ; and 
the man of false tongue, that he must keep his tongue 
from evil speaking, lying, and slandering — not having faith 
enough in Christ to give up their darling sins, for his sake, 
they all go away sorrowful — sorry that they cannot serve 
God and their sins at the same time. 

So you see, brethren, from the word of God, that there 
is a faith, which not being that faith which saveth from 
death eternal, cannot be the true faith. Now let us, from 
the same word, hear what this true faith that saveth, is. 
That this true and saving faith, is the faith of the text, is 
clear from the fact, that it cometh by hearing the word of 
God, which every where enjoins this faith. We learn from 
a verse immediately before the text, what this faith is. He 
that calleth upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. 
'That is the faith that saveth, and the prayer that saveth, 
is one and the same thing. Prayer is faith going to Christ 



244 SEKMON XX. 

and begging for mercy. The faith that saves is the faith 
that justifies, that is, that restores the poor sinner to the 
same place in the sight of God, that he would have stood 
in, if he had never sinned. The faith that saves, is the 
faith that sanctifies. Now we cannot have the faith that 
restores us to the favour of God, without having the faith 
that makes us holy. For how could the poor trembling 
sinner feel that his sins were pardoned, and that the God 
of love was his God, without loving God? And if he loves 
God, he must be holy. For how could he love God, and 
yet, at the same time, love sin that nailed his God and Sa- 
viour to the cross? The faith that saveth is the faith that 
purifieth the heart. The faith that makes the heart pure 
is that which is constantly and earnestly praying that God 
would give us that Spirit that can alone take away our own 
sinful hearts, and give us new and holy ones; that Spirit 
that can alone enable us to root out of our hearts all sin- 
ful passions, lusts, and affections. 

The faith that saveth is the faith that worketh by love. 
That is, the faith that shows itself in love. This love will 
be first of all towards God. Now, when one person loves 
another, how does this love show itself? If you love your 
wives, and husbands, and children, and parents, how do 
you show it ? Is it not by doing every thing that you 
know will please them, and by leaving undone what you 
you know will displease them ? It will be just so if you 
love God ; you wiU do those things that you are taught in 
the word of God will please him, and you will avoid all 
those ways, and words, and things, that you learn from 
the same word will displease him. This love will show it- 
self also towards your fellow men ; it will lead you to be 
kind to them and to pray for them. The faith that saveth 



THE ADVANTAGES OF HEARING GOD'S WORD. 245 

is also the faith that overcometh the world. God and a sin- 
ful world are opposed to each other — ye cannot serve these 
two masters. Now this saving faith enables us to strive 
against the temptations, and sins, and vices, and follies of 
the world, and to get the better of them ; now without this 
faith none of us can be saved. No matter what we think 
of ourselves, no matter what Satan and our own wicked 
hearts may tell us in dreams and visions ; no matter what 
others may tell us; God tells us in his own word, which is 
truth itself, that without this faith, which makes our hearts 
holy, and shows itself in love to God, and to one another, 
and giveth us strength to overcome the world, the flesh, 
and the devil, we must be lost, and lost for ever. Now 
God tells us that this faith cometh by hearing the word of 
God. He does not say that every one that hears, receives 
this faith, for there are many who sit under the sound of 
the gospel all their lives, and die at last without God, and 
without hope in the world. But that when it comes it is 
by hearing. 

Now if this be true, how should you listen to the word 
of God as for your lives ? Now it is enough for us to know 
that God says that this is so, in order for us to -believe that 
it is so. But you yourselves can see that this must be so ; 
for unless you hear about God, and Christ, and salvation, 
you can't believe in them of course ; for how could you 
believe in a thing you had never heard any thing about. 
Now you can't hear of these things, except from the word 
of God. So you see at once that if faith comes at all, it 
must come by the word of God, bringing home to our hearts 
such things as we can't help believing to be true. God, 
who is rich in mercy to our poor, perishing souls, not only 
tells us of all things that are important for us to know, but 



246 SERMON XX. 

lie tells us of these things in such a way that if we listen 
to him with humble and simple hearts, we can't help being 
deeply impressed by them. He not only tells us in his own 
word, that faith comes by hearing the word of God, but 
gives us so many striking instances of this, that if we listen 
we can't help feeling that what he says is truth. At the 
time of the Saviour's going up into heaven, the followers 
of Christ were a little band of weak believers. But when 
the feast of Pentecost (that is Whitsuntide,) was fully 
come, there was an immense multitude gathered together 
around the porch of Solomon's Temple, at Jerusalem. 
And Peter, standing up with the eleven, began to preach 
the word of God unto the multitude. Now when the multi- 
tude heard this word preached unto them, they so fully 
believed its truth, that they cried out to Peter and the rest 
of the apostles — men and brethren, what shall we do? and 
three thousund of them were added unto the Lord in a 
single day. There was a certain man in a city called 
Cesarea, named Cornelius. He sent for the Apostle Peter 
to come into his house, that he might hear words of him. 
And Peter opened his mouth and spake the word unto them. 
While Peter yet spake, the Holy Ghost fell on all them that 
heard the word. And the angel of the Lord said unto 
Philip, one of the first preachers of the gospel, arise, and 
go toward the south, unto the way that leadeth down from 
Jerusalem unto Gaza. And he arose and went. And, 
behold, a man of Ethiopia, of great authority under the 
queen of the country, who had come to Jerusalem for to 
worship, was returning, and, sitting in his chariot, re id the 
book of the prophet Isaiah. You see that this man could 
read the Bible, and was reading it, and yet this would not 
do, he must hear the word preached. Then the Spirit told 



THE ADVANTAGES OE HEARING GOD'S WORD. 247 

Philip to go near unto the chariot ; and when he came, he 
found that the man was reading the Bible. And Philip 
asked him if he understood what he read ; and he said, 
how can I, except some man guide me? Then Philip opened 
his mouth and preached unto him Jesus. And they came 
unto certain water ; and the man said unto Philip, see here 
is water, what doth hinder me to be baptized ? And Philip 
said if thou believest, thou mayest. And he said, I believe 
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he was baptized. 
When the poor, trembling jailor at Philippi cried out. what 
shall I do to be saved? Paul says, believe in the Lord 
Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. And he spake the 
word unto him, and all in his house ; and he believed and 
was baptized. 

So you see, brethren, from all these cases, that faith 
cometh by hearing the word of God. It was when Peter 
preached the word, that three thousand believed and were 
added to the Lord in a single day. It was while Cornelius, 
and those who were with him heard the word, that the 
Holy Ghost, by whom faith is given, fell upon them. It 
was while the Eunuch heard the word that he believed in 
Christ. It was after Paul had spoken the word, that the 
converted jailor, believing, was baptized. And now, 
brethren, may the Spirit of the living God impress upon 
your hearts these two simple truths as following from what 
you have just heard. First, Since it is true, as we have 
seen, that faith cometh by hearing, you ought not to think 
that because you cannot read, that therefore, you owe God 
no gratitude for what spiritual mercies you do enjoy. Oh ! 
brethren, think you that in heaven your songs of hallelujah 
will be at all the less loud and joyful, because you shall 
have reached that blessed place without being able to read? 



248 SERMON XX. 

Or, think you, oh! sinner, who during a whole long life 
time, have sat beneath the faithful preaching of the gos- 
pel, that the flames of hell will burn less fiercely, merely 
because you were not able to read the Bible? No, brethren, 
the hearing the faithful preaching of the gospel imposes 
upon you a debt of gratitude heavier than the brightest 
archangel in his own unaided strength could bear. And 
the despising this gospel preached, will as certainly as there 
is a God above, cast you into that place where the worm 
dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 

2d. Since faith cometh by hearing, as we have seen, oh ! 
with what joyful feet and gladdened hearts, should we 
always go to the place where the gospel is faithfully 
preached. We should never neglect an opportunity of 
hearing it. We should remember that while God's minister 
is preaching, the Spirit in his power divine may come down 
upon the congregation of sinners, as in times of old, and 
work in them that faith which will lead them to cry God be 
merciful to me, and to ask, men and brethren, what shall we do. 
We should remember that though Christ is able and willing 
to open the blind eyes, unstop the deaf ear, and cleanse the 
leprous heart of the sinner, we must sit by the wayside 
where he is expected to pass, or go into the house where he 
is. And, oh ! rather than not go, it would be better for you 
to beg your friends to take up the sick bed whereupon you 
are lying, and carry it to the house of God, that you might 
receive the precious faith that cometh by hearing. We 
should remember that the pool of mercy, whenever the 
waters are troubled, can always cure the halt and lame, 
but we must be at the pool, or else some one will be always 
stepping in before us. 



THE ADVANTAGES OE HEARING GOD'S WORD. 249 

L. M. 

Lord, how delightful 'tis to see 
A whole assembly worship thee ; 
At once they sing, at once they pray, 
They hear of heaven, and learn the way. 

I have been there, and still would go ; 
'Tis like a taste of heaven below 
Not all my pleasures and my play 
Shall tempt me to forget this day, 

0, write upon my memory, Lord, 
The text and doctrine of thy word : 
That I may break thj laws no more, 
But love thee better than before. 

With thoughts of Christ, and things divine 
Fill up this foolish heart of mine ; 
That hoping pardon through his blood, 
I may lie down, and wake with God. 

Questions. — 1. Can a man search the Scriptures without being 
able to read? 2. How must he do it? 3. What does God say comes 
by hearing the Scriptures read ? 4. Who must you have this faith 
in? 5. What is it to have faith in any one? 6. Is there such a 
thing as a false faith ? 7. What does a right faith make you do ? 
8. How does that faith work ? 9. What does it overcome ? 10. Ought 
you to try and have this faith? 11. How are you to get it? 12. 
Should you listen attentively when the Bible and sermons are read ? 



SERMON XXI. 

THE SINNER BEGINNING A RELIGIOUS LIFE. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Grow in grace. — 2 Peter iii. 18. 

Many persons seem to think that when they are once 
converted, the whole work of religion is done. But they 
greatly deceive themselves ; for they have only set out in 
the way to heaven. Religion is spoken of in the Bible 
as something that has life — something that grows. Every 
man who becomes a Christian must, indeed, have his conver- 
sion, just as every man who comes into the world must have 
his birth. Yet as birth is not the whole of life, so conver- 
sion is not the whole of religion. Birth is but the begin- 
ning of life ; conversion is but the beginning of religion. 
Many persons act as if religion is something they may 
take great interest in to-day, and care nothing about to- 
morrow. Many think that religion is intended only for 
Sunday, or big meetings, or revivals, or when we go to 
funerals. Those who think this way will sometimes live on 
for months in the most careless neglect of religious duties, 
living even in sin, until some great preaching and baptizing 
comes round. Then they will be stirred up ; and they will 
talk and act for a while as if they were the most religious 

(250) 






THE SINNER BEGINNING A RELIGIOUS LIFE. 261 

people in the world. For a while, they will live in this 
religious excitement and then fall back again into their old 
ways. If this is true of any of you, I must tell you to 
take care lest, you deceive yourselves and fail to reach 
heaven. Religion is something that grows. Our Saviour 
said, it is like a grain of mustard seed which is the 
smallest of all seeds, but after a while it grows to be a large 
tree. The seed cast into the ground does not grow for a 
few days and then stop and stand still for a month or two, 
and then spring off again into active life. A man in good 
health is not found fainting to-day and active and strong 
to-morrow. He does not spend his life in this way. Now 
it is precisely so in religion. It does not do its work in 
your hearts to-day and leave you without its graces to- 
morrow. Religion has, indeed, its joys and its sorrows, its 
sickness and its health, its cloud and its sunshine, its dark- 
ness and its light, its winter and its summer. But religion 
does not grow by fits and starts. It is steady, active,growing. 
. Nearly every thing that has life grows. The trees of 
the forest, the plants of the field, the vegetables of your 
garden, the corn that you plant, and the children of your 
bosom; all grow. So you are commanded to u grow in 
grace" In other words, if you are Christians you must 
grow in love to God, grow in holiness of life, grow in good 
works, grow in religious duties, grow in ripeness for hea- 
ven. For this reason, religion is called " life." It has its 
root in the heart. As it springs up, it strengthens and 
brings forth fruit in due season to the glory of God. Now 
let us look at the growing life in religion. 

1st. It grows regularly. When the corn that you have 
planted in the spring time sprouts, from that moment it 
begins to grow. It is so with all plants, and all animals, aa 






252 SERMON XXI. 

soon as they are born, begin to grow. The moment a 
child is brought into the world it starts off to growing. 
So the moment you are a new creature in Christ Jesus, or 
the moment you are born of the Spirit, you must begin to 
grow in grace and in the knowlege and love of God. 

Now, my friends it is just as necessary to your Christian 
health and life that you should "grow in grace," as it is 
to the strength of your body that it should grow in size ; or 
as it is to the ripening and perfection of the corn that it 
should grow to its proper height. If your crops do not grow, 
there can be no harvest and corn gathering. If the young 
orchard you have planted out, .or the tobacco you are work- 
ing, does not grow, there can be no fruit, no profit from 
the farm. So, too, if you do not grow in religion, in holi- 
ness, you can bring forth no fruit to the glory of God ; 
you cannot ripen for heaven. You must have strength in 
religion. Your faith must strengthen, your hope must 
strengthen, your love must strengthen, your fear and 
hatred of sin must strengthen, your holy purposes must 
strengthen, your determination to do right and to bear 
trials must strengthen. They who belong to God are said 
to go from strength to strength. They perfect holiness in 
the fear of God. 

But I want to guard you against one danger. Many 
persons think that they must measure their growth in reli- 
gion by the joy they feel. If they do not always feel 
joyful, they begin to say they have no religion, and then 
give it up altogether. You ought to remember that the 
j°y y ou feel a * the beginning of a religious life, may not 
continue always. It would be a happy thing for you if 
you could " rejoice always." It would be right if you 
could do so. But some Christians cannot. And you must 



THE SINNER BEGINNING A RELIGIOUS LIFE. 253 

not judge that you have no religion because you cannot 
rejoice as much through all your life as they do at their 
conversion, and soon after. When you go into the field 
where the sheep are grazing, what do you see there ? You 
see the young lambs but a few days old, sporting about in 
their joy of heart. You do not see the old and full grown 
sheep joining with them. Their joys have become settled ; 
they have long since forgotten the joys they felt when they 
were little lambs, yet they are as innocent as the young 
lambs, and better suited for the purposes for which the 
flock was intended. In the same way, the young Christian 
may often feel a glow of happiness, which those who have 
grown more in religion, may have ceased to feel. As you 
grow in grace, your religious joys may often settle down 
into a calm peace, which passeth all understanding. 

2. Your religion must show its growth in every thing 
about you. You know that as the roots of a tree grow 
larger and stronger in the ground, its branches also grow 
wider and higher in the air. As the limbs of your body grow, 
your whole frame gets larger. As your memory and judg- 
ment strengthen, the other parts of your mind get stronger. 
Now, suppose this was not so. Suppose when you have 
planted your tobacco, or corn, it should run all to root ; it 
would be worth nothing. Suppose your potatoes should 
run all to vines ; they would be of no service to you. Sup- 
pose your arms and legs should not grow, but remain as 
they were when you were an infant, and that your body 
should grow to its full size ; would you not be deformed, 
and helpless ? Suppose your memory should grow in power, 
while all the other parts of your mind should stay just as 
they were when you were an infant ; would you not be an 
idiot ? If the corn and vegetables of your garden — if the 

22 



254 SERMON XXI. 

crop that you have put in produce any thing valuable, every 
part of them must grow. The roots, the stalk, the leaves, 
the branches, the blossoms, the fruit, the grain must all grow. 
If your body becomes strong, every part of it must grow ; 
your feet, and legs, and arms, and chest, and head, and 
fingers, and every nerve, and bone, and vein, and fibre, all 
must grow. If your mind is to be sound, your judgment 
and memory, and every other part of it, must continue to 
grow and strengthen. This is what I mean, that your 
growth in religion must show itself in every thing about 
you. You are to be religious in all your duties, and labours, 
and pleasures, and trials, and afflictions. Your religion 
must make you good men and women in every thing, and 
at all times — through every day and night, as well as every 
Sunday. If religion makes you honest, it must not leave 
you unkind and cross. If it makes you fond of going to 
church, it must not make you dishonest. If it makes you 
honest, it must not leave you to tell lies. If it makes you 
prayerful, it must not leave you to sin in secret. If it makes 
you warm in heart, it must not leave you to be idle, and 
worldly minded. If it makes you zealous for God, it must 
not leave you to slander, or speak unkindly of your neigh- 
bours. To be a truly religious man, is to be a "new man." 
It is to cease from all evil, and try to do all good. If 
Christ lives in your heart, the God of all peace is said to 
" sanctify you wholly, and your whole soul, and spirit, and 
body, are preserved blameless unto the coming of 'our Lord 
Jesus Christ." If you do not grow in grace this way, you 
have much reason to fear that you are yet dead in sin — 
you have never been made alive in Christ Jesus. 

Now I will tell you as plainly as I can, how you are to 
"grow in grace." 



THE SINNER BEGINNING A RELIGIOUS LIFE. 255 

1. You must try to make the duties of religion a plea- 
sure to you. You must not think of them as a hard ser- 
vice ; you must not think of God as a hard and cruel mas- 
ter. Religion is something in which your souls ought to 
delight ; not something to which you should drive yourselves 
as if by the lash. The deer that has been heated in. the 
chase, does not force itself to drink as it crosses the water 
brook, or to seek refuge from its pursuers in the river. The 
horse that has laboured hard at the plough all day, does 
not force itself to lie down in the stall at night. The lark 
that springs up in your path, as you go to your labours in 
the field, does not force itself to rejoice in its song. When 
you meet with the friends you love, you do not force your- 
self to engage in pleasant conversation with them. It is 
just so with your religion. You must not view it as a 
hard master forcing you to your duties to God. Wearied, 
tired, and sick of sin, you must go to God for refreshment. 
Jesus Christ said, " if any man thirst, let him come unto 
me and drink." " Come unto me all ye that labour, and 
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." This is the 
way you are to please God, by giving him a willing and 
pleasant service. He does not tell you that you must be 
driven to your religion by mere fear, or the lashings of con- 
science ; but that you must come, as a hungry child goes 
to its parent for food; as. one in thirst, goes to the foun- 
tain for drink ; or as one in sickness, goes to a good and 
kind physician for medicine. If you knew that your chil- 
dren obeyed you, merely because they were afraid of your 
heavy lash, you would not be satisfied with it. If your 
master knew that you had no love for him, and felt no in- 
terest in his affairs, but served him only because you were 
afraid of his punishments, he would not value you much. 



256 SERMON XXI. 

So God will not value your services, he will not bless you, 
and help you to grow in grace, unless you come to him with 
a willing service. You must take pleasure in him. He 
commands you to delight yourself in him. All true Chris- 
tians are said to take pleasure in the things of God — in his 
word — in his worship — in his people — in his presence. 

2. If you would grow in grace, you must aim high in re- 
ligion; you must have some decided object before you. 
Many persons set out in the religious life, without knowing 
or caring much what sort of Christians they are to become. 
They think very little about the duty of growing in grace, 
or, as St. Paul says, of "going on to perfection ." If you 
wish your lands to produce good crops, you must have some 
fixed plans for your farming. If your master should call 
you all up on Monday morning, and say to you, " boys, go 
into the fields, each one pick up the first tools you come to, 
whether they be ploughs, hoes, spades, axes, or forks, and 
go to work on the first thing that happens to be in your 
way." If he should do this, what would become of your 
farm ? Some of you would be doing one thing, and some 
another. Here and there, one might be found, who had 
accidentally fallen on the right work. But on this plan he 
could not do much to make the crop grow. To make it 
grow, you must work with some plan and system. So if 
you would grow in grace, you must set out with the aim of 
growing in grace. You must see where your heart needs 
most watching and cultivation — you must find where you 
are poorest in Christian graces — where the weeds of sin are 
most apt to grow. There you must work, and keep back 
your besetting sins. You must water and enrich the ground 
of your heart, there. You must think often how you can 
best grow in grace. You must plan for it, and prepare for 



THE SINNER BEGINNING A RELIGIOUS LIFE. 257 

it, and pray for it, and make every thing bend towards it. 
If you will do this, God will bless with his Holy Spirit, all 
your attempts to grow in grace. When he sees that you 
are seeking him in secret, he will be with you, and will 
bless you in public. If he finds you determined to do your 
best to grow in grace, he will strengthen you by his spirit 
in the inner man. You shall grow as a cedar of Lebanon, 
or as a tree planted by the water side. You shall bring 
forth fruit in due season, and your leaf shall not wither. 

3. If you would grow in grace, you must let your con- 
duct be such as a Christian's ought to be. " If any man 
be in Christ, he is a new creature." Your life must prove 
that you are a new creature. If your religion does not 
lead you to a holy life, it will never save you. If a tree be 
good, the fruit will be good. If a fountain be sweet, the 
stream cannot be bitter. It is impossible for you to grow 
in grace, while you live in any sin. If you have been given 
to the practice of lying, or cursing, or slander, or drunk- 
enness, or adultery, or wicked company, or stealing, or Sab- 
bath breaking, or quarrelling, or anger, or any other sin of 
thought or act, you must give it up for ever — you must 
pray God to forgive you for it, and to keep you unspotted 
from the world. If you do not this, you can never grow 
in grace. You will grieve the holy spirit of God away, 
and fall back again into the world. You should take care 
never to do any thing which you cannot ask God's blessing 
upon. If you cannot carry your religion into any place 
you are about to go, or any thing you are about to do, do 
not go there — do not do that thing. Try all your conduct 
by this test, " and whether you eat or drink, or whatever 
you do, do all to the glory of God." Whatever is given 
you to do, try by divine help to do your duty in it. If any 

21* 



258 SERMON XXI. 

one even wrongs you, so behave yourself, that it may not 
be written against you in heaven, that you offended God in 
it. Show your religion in your obedience to your master, 
with all fear, " not with eye-service as men pleasers, but as 
the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the 
heart." Always show by your modest behaviour, mildness 
of temper, strict honesty, and faithful attention to the work 
given you to do, that you have been with Jesus, and have 
learned your religion of him. See too, that you do not for- 
get the command of Christ, to confess him before men. He 
has given you his church to help you to heaven. You 
should join yourself to it, and become one of the company 
of his professed disciples. 

4. If you would grow in grace, you must not neglect the 
duty of private prayer. 

The directions given by our Saviour to his disciples, are, 
" When thou prayest, enter into thy closet ; and when thou 
hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, 
and thy Father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee 
openly." One of the very best evidences you can have that 
you are growing in grace, is to find that you are taking 
pleasure in being often with God in prayer. If you have 
no taste for this duty, I care not how much you may seem 
to be religious, you may be sure you are not so. You may 
find pleasure in going to church, or in joining with the peo- 
ple of God in songs of praise, and after all you may be in 
doubt whether you are growing in grace. But if you take 
delight in prayer, it is the very best evidence that your 
soul is in a healthy state — that you are hungering and 
thirsting after righteousness. No low and unworthy feel- 
ings can induce you to go alone, and be in secret prayer to 
God. When you have been very sick, one of the very best 



THE SINNER BEGINNING A RELIGIOUS LIFE. 259 

proofs that you are getting into good health, is, that you 
haveagood appetite, and are constantly asking for something 
to eat. So if you take pleasure in often going to God in 
prayer, asking for more grace and holiness, you may be 
sure you are getting stronger in religion, and growing in 
grace. So important is the duty of private prayer to your 
religion, that I would most earnestly advise you to have 
some particular times when you may go and be alone with 
God. And you ought not to let any thing keep you from 
it. If, at any time you feel cold and careless in religion, 
and think you cannot pray, still do not give it up, go and 
make the- trial — go and mourn before God over your cold- 
ness, and pray to him, to kindle a flame of holy love in 
your heart. 

You see, then, my dear friends, that your religious life is 
a growing life — a holy life. "Without holiness, no man 
shall see the Lord." I care not who you are, or what 
church you belong to — I care not what sort of an experi- 
ence you have given in, or how you were baptized — I care 
not what sights you think you have seen, or sounds you 
have heard — I care not what people around you may think 
of your religion, if you do not grow in grace, if you are 
not holy, you are not fit for heaven. You are denying the 
gospel of Jesus Christ, and making his death of no effect. 
If you are not living a holy life, you are opposing all the 
preaching, and examples, and blessings, and glory of Jesus 
Christ. If you are a true child of God, you will feel that 
the very cream and essence of your salvation is, that you 
are free from sin, and made holy like your Saviour. To 
tell a true Christian that he is to be saved without being 
holy, is to contradict, and confuse all his thoughts of 
heaven, and crush all his hopes of eternal happiness. He 



260 SERMON XXI. 

knows and feels that where there is no holiness there can 
be no happiness. 

L. M. 

come, thou great and gracious power. 

Accept a home within my breast ; 
My spirit cheer in every hour, 

In every season give me rest. 

teach me well to know my heart, 

My folly and my sin to see; 
On earth to bear a lowly part, 

And give myself and all to thee. 

Teach me to trust a Saviour's name, 

To feel a Saviour's dying love ; 
To be redeemed — be that my fame, — 

My honours let me seek above. 

"When pleasure cheers and friendship smiles, 
And smoothly sweeps my bark along, 

Then save me from the tempter's wiles, 
Be thou my joy, be thou my song. 

Yea, at the last, when ghastly death 

This life's short brittle thread shall break ; 

Do thou attend my latest breath, 
Thy Spirit clothe me when I wake. 

And when around the judgment throne 
The myriads of the earth shall meet ; 

wilt thou then my spirit own, 
And fill me with thy bliss complete ! 

Questions. — 1. Is the whole of religion done when you are con- 
verted ? 2. What is religion like ? 3. Is it intended only for Sun- 
days? 4. Does religion grow by fits and starts? 5. Does it grow 
regularly? 6. What must it show its growth in? 7. What must 
you do to grow in religion? 8. Must religion be a pleasure to you ? 
9. Must you aim high ? 10. How must your conduct be ? 11. What 
about prayer ? 



SERMON XXII. 

GOD'S GRACE, AND MAN'S ENDEAVOURS. 

BY THE REV. DAVID CALDWELL. 

Work out your own salvation, with fear and trembling : for it ia 
God which worketh within you, both to will and to do. — Phil. ii. 
12, 13. 

Our text, my friends, is addressed to those who are 
already Christians. It teaches you two things — first, that 
you are to work out your own salvation with fear and 
trembling — secondly, that God worketh within you both to 
will and to do. You have here, in the first place, a duty 
required, and, in the second place, an encouragement to 
try to perform the duty. The duty required of you, is, to 
work out your own salvation with fear and trembling : the 
encouragement for trying to perform the duty, is, that God 
is working within you both the power to will, and the power 
to do. Thus you learn from our text, that you should work 
with the power that God gives you to work, and then you 
may expect to receive your salvation. 

And is not this just the way in which he deals with us 
in business relating to this world? Does he not give the 
farmer land, and the means of working it ? But does he 
ever give him a crop without labour ? Are there not cer- 
tain things which you must do before you can have a 

(261) 



262 SEKMON XXII. 

harvest ? Will God plough the ground, put in the seed, or 
fence in your field for you ? You know that he will not. 
Nevertheless, when you are doing all these things for your- 
selves, he sends his blessing of sun and rain to ensure you 
a crop. 

Let us then consider how we are to work out our salvation. 

First. If you would so work out your own salvation as to 
have God continue to work within you effectually, to will 
and to do all things necessary to be willed and done, you 
must forsake all your sins. God will not help you to 
work out your own salvation, if you continue habitually, 
and wilfully to break his commandments. It makes no 
difference how small it may be, if you indulge one single 
sin, wilfully or habitually, it drives God's blessed spirit 
from your bosoms. That blessed Spirit loves to dwell in a 
bosom where there is a broken heart, and a contrite spirit ; 
but it cannot dwell where love of sin prevails. Sin quenches 
its gracious influences, and grieves it away. You recollect 
it was but one sin that shut our first parents out of Para- 
dise ; and only one sin, if it be not forsaken, will shut us 
out of Paradise above. A great many persons act as if 
they could work out their salvation while holding the world 
in one hand, and religion in the other. All such persons 
are sadly mistaken. Our blessed Lord tells us that we can- 
not serve two masters at the same time — God, and the 
world. You cannot have God for your friend and helper 
in the great work of saving your souls, if you allow your- 
selves in the practice of a single known sin. Every sin 
must be forsaken — sins of thought, of feeling, as well as sins 
of action. You must be always trying by God's grace, to 
keep your hearts and minds pure, as well as your bodies. 
hands, and tongues. 



god's grace, and man's endeavours. 263 

Moreover, if you would so work out your own salvation, 
as to have God continue to help you in the work, you must 
not only forsake, but also hate all sin. It will not answer 
for you to forsake sin as Lot's wife did Sodom, still loving 
it, and casting many a longing look behind. Having put 
your hand to the plough, there must be no looking back, if 
you would enter the kingdom of heaven. You must flee 
sin, and all temptations to sin, as you would flee the face of 
a serpent. You must rather die, than deliberately do any 
thing wrong. The Saviour tells us, that if any man love 
father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or sisters, yea, or 
even his own life, more than he loves him, he cannot be his 
disciple. You see, then, that you are to forsake sin in 
every form, and to hate sin in every form, and not to reckon 
even life itself worth saving, if you have to save it by doing 
any thing wrong. 

Again, if you would so work out your own salvation, as 
to have God work within you effectually, to will and to do 
all things necessary to be willed and done, you must make 
yourselves acquainted with his word. I know, my friends, 
that few of you can read the Bible for yourselves, yet you 
can easily get others to read it for you. I know that all 
Christian ministers would most gladly read it for you : you 
could not please them better than by asking them to do so. 
You can also hear the Bible read at church on Sunday ; 
and if you would pay attention, you might, in that way, 
learn a great deal of the Bible by heart. Most of you 
coloured people can remember what you hear more readily 
than we do. Besides, there are many of you, whose mas- 
ters and mistresses, and especially the children of the family 
would read the Bible to you, if you were to ask them. You 
could make yourselves acquainted with it, by hearing it read 



264 SERMON XXII. 

by the few among yourselves who have learned to read. You 
could also make yourselves acquainted with the word of 
God by listening when it is preached — by asking Christians 
to explain it to you. In all these ways you might learn 
what God has spoken to you in his word. And it is of the 
utmost importance for you to know what he has spoken to 
you, otherwise you may fall into sad and fatal mistakes. 
The teachings of the Bible are God's own words, and can 
alone direct us in the way of life. It tells us that God made 
our first parents in his own image, after his own likeness — 
which image and likeness consisted in a pure mind, and 
loving heart. It also tells us that, by the sin of our first 
parents, we all have lost that pure mind, and loving heart, 
and with them, also the favour of God. And yet, the 
Bible at the same time tells us that, by dying upon the 
cross, Jesus Christ has satisfied God for our sins, and will 
now forgive them, if we ask their forgiveness in his name, 
and give us again a pure mind and loving heart. More- 
over, the Bible tells us what duties we owe to God — what 
duties we owe to ourselves, and what duties we owe to 
others. You see, then, how important it is for you to make 
yourselves acquainted with it. You should treasure up in 
your memories, all that it tells you about yourselves as sin- 
ners ; all that it tells you about him who redeemed you ; 
and all that it tells you about the duties you owe to God, 
to yourselves, and to others. You should meditate day 
and night on what the Bible says to you, and try to live as it 
directs you to live. And yet to forsake and hate all sin, 
to acquaint yourselves with God's word, and strive daily to 
live as it directs you to live, is not all that you are to do 
in working out your own salvation. There is one thing 
more to be done. 



AND man's endeavours. 265 

If you would so work out jour own salvation as to have 
God work within you effectually, to will and to do all things 
necessary to be willed and done, you must pray ivithout 
ceasing. You should allow no day to pass without prayer 
to God, to grant you true repentance, to forgive you all 
your sins, negligence, and ignorance, and to endue you 
with the grace of his Holy Spirit, to amend your lives 
according to his Holy Word. God does not require us to 
be always on our knees, neither to be always praying aloud 
ivith our lips ; yet he does require us to be always in a 
prayerful frame of mind. ' He requires that we should 
always have the spirit of prayer in our hearts. Remember, 
however, that you always offer up all your prayers to God, 
•in the name of his Son, and in humble reliance upon his 
merits for their acceptance. If you are unconverted, you 
you should pray God without ceasing, to give you his Holy 
Spirit, to change your hearts. If you are converted, 
you should pray God without ceasing, to give you that same 
Spirit, to enable you to live as Christians ought to live. 
God knows, before hand, what things you need; yet he has 
determined not to grant you the things you need, unless 
you ask them. Wherefore, daily make your wants and 
wishes known unto God. Let the words of prayer be the 
first words on your lips in the morning, and the last words 
on your lips at night ; and let a spirit of prayer be in your 
hearts all the day long. Nor imagine prayer to consist in 
fine words and long sentences. The Bible gives us a very 
different idea of prayer. What was the prayer that sent 
the publican down to his house justified ? God be merciful 
to me, a sinner ! What was the prayer that saved Peter 
from a watery grave ? Lord save ! I perish ! What was 
the prayer that restored the blind men their sight ? Jesus, 

23 



266 SEEMON XXII. 

thou Son of David, have mercy on us ! What was the 
prayer that secured the dying thief a Paradise, the day it 
was uttered ? Lord, remember me, when thou comest into 
thy kingdom ! Pray then, without ceasing. You had 
better omit any thing else than prayer. It moves the hand 
that moves the world. It draws down the life of heaven 
into the soul. 

Thus, my friends, I have endeavoured to tell you what you 
must do to work out your own salvation. I have told you 
that you must forsake sin in every form, and hate sin in 
every form ; that you must acquaint yourselves with God's 
word, and strive to live as it directs you to live ; and also 
that you must pray without ceasing. These are the things 
you must do, if you would have God help you in the great 
work' of saving your souls. God will help you more and 
more when you do all you can to help yourselves, with the 
grace already received. I recollect here the story of a 
heathen man, that completely illustrates the meaning of 
our text. This heathen man, of whom I am now speaking, 
was a wagoner ; while on the road he got his wagon so 
badly stalled, that he could not get it out. Upon this, he 
became very angry, refused to do any thing, and began to 
find fault with Hercules, one of the gods of the heathen, 
for having brought him into such a situation. Calling to 
him from heaven, (as the story goes,) Hercules told him to 
put his shoulder to the wheel, and use what strength he 
had already given him. The wagoner replied, that it would 
be useless for him to do so, since his strength alone was not 
sufficient to lift his load out of the mire. Hercules, how- 
ever, told him to put his shoulder to the wheel, and then 
call on him for help. The wagoner at last did as Hercules 
directed him ; he put his shoulder to the wheel, and used 



god's grace, and man's endeavours. 267 

all the strength he had, and cried for more, and no sooner 
had he done so, than help came, and he raised his load out 
of the mire, and went on his way rejoicing. Now, although 
there never was such a god as Hercules, yet this little 
story teaches us how the true God deals with us his crea- 
tures. If we only do the things we can do, God then does for 
us things that we can not do. It was thus he dealt with 
Moses. Moses could not make a passage for himself and 
the Israelites, through the Red Sea ; yet he could lift up 
his rod, and stretch out his hand over the sea ; and no 
sooner had he done so, than God made the passage for him. 
It was thus he dealt with Naaman, the Assyrian. Naaman 
could not cure himself of his leprousy ; yet he could go and 
wash seven times in the waters of Jordan ; and no sooner 
had he done so, than God healed him. It was thus he 
dealt with the blind man. The blind man could not cause 
himself to see ; yet he could go and wash in the pool of 
Siloam ; and no sooner had he done so, than God gave him 
sight. It was thus, too, that he dealt with the man hav- 
ing a withered hand. The poor man could not stretch it 
forth of himself, yet he could will to stretch it forth ; and 
no sooner had he done so, than God restored it whole, like 
as the other. It is thus, too, that God deals with the 
farmer. The farmer cannot make himself a crop ; yet he 
can prepare the ground, put in the seed, and fence in the 
field ; and having done this, God sends his blessing of sun 
and rain, to ensure him a crop. It is so always. We have 
to do our part with the strength that God gives, and God 
will do his, giving us everlasting life. We have but to use 
the means which he bids us use, and the promised blessing 
is sure to follow — in things temporal, generally ; in things 
spiritual, always. If then you do not forsake, and hate all 



! 



268 SERMON XXII. 

sin ; if you do not acquaint yourselves with God's word, 
and strive to live as it directs you to live ; and, moreover, 
do not pray without ceasing, God will not continue to hel 
you by his Holy Spirit. 

But above all, let me tell you, that if you are the tru 
children of God, and disciples of Christ, when you hav 
done all, you will feel yourselves to be unprofitable servants ; 
and that if you had done ten thousand times more towards 
working out your own salvation, than the best Christian 
ever did, you must rely entirely on what our blessed Lord, 
and Saviour did and suffered for us, as you hope to be 
saved. You must regard all your works only as filthy rags, 
compared with that robe of righteousness which he must 
put upon us, when we appear before God in judgment. 

God grant that all of us may find that robe prepared 
for us. Amen. 

The following reflection upon his manner of giving meat 
to his dog, by the great and good Sir Robert Boyle, may 
properly follow the foregoing sermon. 

" Ignorantly thankful creature ? thou beggest in such a 
way, that by what would appear an antedated gratitude, if 
it were not a designless action, the manner of thy petition- 
ing, before-hand rewards the grant of thy request ; thy ad- 
dress and recompense being so made, that the meat I cast 
thee may very well feed religion in me. For but observe 
this dog : I hold him out meat, and my inviting voice loudly 
encourages and invites him to take it ; it is, indeed, held 
higher than he can leap, and yet if he leap not at it, I do 
not give it him ; but if he do, I let it fall half way into his 
mouth. Not unresemblingly deals God with us ; he shows 
and holds forth to us (the soul's true aliment,) eternal glory; 
and his most gracious word summons and animates us to 






god's grace, and man's endeavours. 269 

attempt it. Alas ! it is far above the reach of our endea- 
vours, and our deserts ; and yet if we aspire not to it, and 
strive not for it, in vain do we expect it. But if we faith- 
fully do what in us lies, and our endeavours strain them- 
selves to the utmost, God mercifully allows the will for the 
effect, measures our performances by what they aimed at, 
and favourably accepting what we can do, for what we should 
do, he supplies the imperfections of our faint, yet aspiring 
attempts, by stooping condescensions ; and what our endea- 
vours want of reaching up to, his grace and acceptation 
brings down. Piety is the condition, though not the price 
of heaven ; and (like the wedding garment in the parable,) 
though it give us not a right to the beatific feast, is, yet, 
that, without which none shall be admitted as a duly quali- 
fied guest." 

Questions. — 1. What is the first thing the text teaches? 2. What 
is the second ? 3. What must you do if you would have God to work 
in you, and about you ? 4. What else must you do about your sins ? 
5. What must you do about God's word ? 6. How can you make 
yourselves acquainted with God's word ? 7. What must you do 
about prayer ? 8. What is said about the man in the mud ? 9. Does 
God deal with us in the same way ? 10. Can any of our works bene- 
fit God ? 



SERMON XXIII. 

HOW THE CHRISTIAN GROWS IN GRACE. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

First the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. — 
St. Mark iv. 28. 

Our Saviour tells us that religion is like good sound 
seed — that the hearts of men are like the ground into 
which it is to he sowed, and that preachers of the gospel 
are the sowers. He calls religion "the kingdom of God." 
" So is the kingdom of God," he says, "as if a man cast 
seed into the ground, and should sleep and rise night and 
day, and the seed should spring and grow up he knoweth 
not how." You can tell when your wheat looks well and is 
growing fast — you can tell when it is ripe and ought to be 
gathered into the barn — when it should be sent to the mill 
to be made into flour ; and when the time comes round for 
you to sow it again. But one thing you cannot tell me. 
You cannot tell how that wheat grows. The wisest man on 
earth cannot tell this. You know that it does grow. If 
you go away or do not notice li for a week you can see that 
it grows. You know that it first shows itself in the young 
blade and tender stock, then afterwards, in the spring, it 
rises up still higher and stronger; then, in the summer, 
comes out the head or ear in full size and ripens. You can 
(270) 



HOW THE CHRISTIAN GROWS IN GRACE. 271 

watch all its changes from one stage to another until it 
is ripened and fit for the barn. But you cannot tell me 
how it grows and is prepared for the harvest. All you know 
about it, is that there is " first the blade, then the ear, after 
that the full corn in the ear." 

Remember that these are not my words ; but the words 
of Him who came to show sinners the way to heaven, and 
to save them. He taught as never man taught. He tells 
us that true religion is like the growing and ripening grain. 
That as the grain may sometimes lie long in the ground 
before it shows itself; so religion maybe working for some- 
time in your hearts before you may let it be known to any 
one. That as the grain needs to be watered, protected and 
cultivated before it can produce, so religion must be 
watched and prayed over and kept free from sin before it 
can grow strong in your hearts. 

The Bible never speaks of the Christian as one who is 
to stand still and do nothing and not prepare for the great 
judgment harvest. He is spoken of as one who must always 
be going forward. He is said to be like a child that may be 
very weak at first, but gains strength and activity every 
day. He is said to be like a soldier who is always watch- 
ing and fighting against the enemy. He is said to be like 
a man in a race, pressing on with all speed to the end of 
his course. He is said to be like a boxer who struggles hard 
for the victory. He is said to be like grass that grows — 
like the sun that shines unto the perfect day — like a tree 
planted by the water side that brings forth fruit in season. 
Now, what do all these things teach us? I will tell you. 
They teach us that while we must always go forward in 
religon, we must not be discouraged if we go forward 
slowly and gradually. If you will listen to what I have 



272 SERMON XXIII. 

to say, and remember that I am speaking to you in God's 
name, I will try and show you the way that Christians 
often grow in religion. 

1. Christians may sometimes grow in grace gradually; 
just like the plants of the garden or the grain in the field. 
Some grow faster, some slower, aecording as they have the 
means of grace and do their Christian duties. Kemember the 
words of the text, "first the blade, then the ear, and after 
that the full corn in the ear." You go out every morning or 
evening, and watch the -plants of your garden. You see 
every day that they have grown some. Even while you 
look at them they grow, though you cannot see them 
rising up. 

I have seen many Christians greatly troubled because all 
the sins were not rooted out of their hearts at once, and 
all the graces of the Holy Spirit made to grow right off at 
once in their stead. They will not be satisfied with a 
gradual change ; cultivating their hearts every day, while 
God waters them with the dews of his blessing. Every 
man who has Christian faith has the seeds of holiness in 
his heart. If these seeds are watched and prayed over and 
encouraged they will certainly bring forth fruit. But God 
has no where promised us in His word that our hearts shall 
at once be cleared of all their sins, and all the graces of 
religion at once made to grow up and shine out in all their 
perfection. The seed of religion may sometimes lie a good 
while in the heart, waiting for its proper season to spring 
up. Every thing has its season. The corn and the wheat 
sometimes lie long in the ground and do not come up until 
a good season for sprouting comes on. Then they gradually 
come ; " first the blade, then the ear, after that the full 
corn in the ear." So it may often be with religion. It may 



HOW THE CHRISTIAN GROWS IN GRACE. 273 

first show itself by warning you against sin, frightening 
you from it, weakening its power over you. These are but 
the blades of the spiritual plant. Now when you see the 
blade of the wheat above the ground, you judge at once 
that the seed is there and has taken root. This is just as 
good proof that the grain is there as if it had sprung up 
to the ripe stock in an hour after you had sowed it. You 
have, indeed, much to do before you can become a perfect 
Christian. Yet you must not suppose, that, because you 
have not become full grown Christians in a day or a month, 
you have no faith. Your religion must show itself by 
its gradual growth. It must teach you at all times and in 
all places to do what is right, whether it be light or heavy, 
pleasant or unpleasant, at home or abroad ; in the house, or 
in the field, in secret or in public. A tree that is planted, 
gradually fastens its roots tighter in the earth, and lifts its 
head higher towards heaven. So you must be "rooted and 
grounded" in love to Christ — you must draw all youi 
spiritual strength from Him while you use all the means of 
grace to make you better and happier Christians. This is 
the way you must grow in religion. You must grow by 
night and by day, in joy and in sorrow; you must take the 
sunshine and the shower ; you must ripen in secret and in 
silence until you come to full growth and perfection in your 
religion. 

2. Christians often cannot understand all the ways by 
which they grow in religion, just as you cannot understand 
all the ways by which the grain of the field grows. You 
know that if the seed you have put into the ground is to 
bring forth fruit, you must have other things to suit it, to 
help it on. The soil, and the climate, and the season, must 
all suit it. It must be fenced in, and cultivated, and watered 



274 SERMON XXIII. 

with the rains of heaven. It must have sunshine and dew, 
day and night. You know that without these, in all their 
proper times and portions, the seed cannot grow. The 
meanest weed cannot grow without them. Yet you cannot 
tell exactly, what good every little warmth, or cold, or wet 
or dryness, or refreshing wind, or sweet sunshine, may do 
in ripening and perfecting the grain. You only know that 
the plants must have all these or they cannot grow — 
that they do not live on sunshine alone, nor shower, nor 
dew, nor soil of earth ; but they live on all. 

It is just so in your religion. I care not what may be 
your place or business in the world; whether you be a 
master or a servant ; whether you be a free man or a slave 
— you have some duties to do, some trials to bear, some 
labours to perform, some punishments to suffer, some mer- 
cies to enjoy. You must meet these things if you would 
be Christians. You can no more grow in religion without 
them than the corn can grow without soil, or sunshine, or 
rain, or night dews. You cannot lay these duties aside ; 
you cannot hide from these trials, and then say, I. will be a 
good and growing Christian. No man can tell you how 
these things all act on your souls for their good. But they 
all help to carry you on to the "perfection of the saints." 
I wish you to remember that your religion is not kept 
alive merely by praying, or going to church, or hearing 
sermons, or the Bible read. I mean it is not kept alive by 
any one of these alone. It is not kept alive merely by any 
one of all your duties and labours. But I will tell you 
how you must keep it alive. You must do it by attending 
to all your religious duties and being faithful and honest, 
and good Christians in your hearts, and in all your outward 
acts. You must pray and go to church, and keep holy the 



HOW THE CHRISTIAN GROWS IN GRACE. 275 

Sabbath day, and listen to the Bible when read, and think 
of God, and try to be faithful, and kind, and obedient to 
your masters and mistresses, in all things. You must try 
to do every thing with a good will and a pious heart. The 
Bible says, " whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, 
you must do it all to God." It is by all these things put 
together in their proper time and place that you are to grow 
in religion. Your great business must be, hour by hour, 
and day by day, to live the life of Christians. This is 
the way you are to get ripe and ready for heaven. 

Here I wish to remind you of a solemn, and fearful truth. 
It is that just as every good word and work ; every trial, and 
sorrow, and temptation, if borne in a proper way and 
improved, will be as the sunshine and the shower in ripen- 
ing your souls for heaven; So every falsehood, every act 
of dishonesty, of stealing, or wicked desires ; every decep- 
tion, every violation of the Sabbath, and every other sin 
of thought, word, or deed, are all helping to prepare and 
ripen your soul for the abode of Satan and the punishment 
of eternal death. 

3. Many Christians are hindered from growing in religion 
by things they do not think of. I mean, by failing to do a 
great many little duties. Suppose you had gone into the 
wood in winter and cleared out a piece of land, and then 
put it in corn ; but had neglected to fence it in, or to plough 
or hoe it ? What would have become of the crop ? You 
know as well as I do, that it would have failed. 

I went into my garden and saw the old gardener scratch- 
ing among the potatoe vines for a mess for dinner. As 
soon as he saw me, he said, " well, sir, we have failed in 
potatoes this year." What is the cause of it ? said I. His 
answer was. " I recollect the very day almost, when these 



276 sermon xxni. 

potatoes ought to have been worked, but you sent me 
away to do some work for one of the neighbours that week. 
When I came back I had a great deal to do, and when I 
was able to work the potatoes, it was too late to do them 
any good, and that is the reason we have got no potatoes." 
Very many Christians think there can be no danger in 
neglecting this or that little Christian duty, now and then, 
or committing this or that little sin, now and then. But 
suppose a farmer should talk so of his corn, or cotton, or 
tobacco ? If you should hear him say, " there can be no 
mischief in failing to plough the corn this spring — there is 
a little gap in the fence there ; but it is only one pannel, 
and that cannot do much harm." Would you call that 
man a good and thriving farmer ? Suppose, just as your 
tobacco is ripening, and almost ready to cut, the master 
should say, "Well, boys, the skies look a little threaten- 
ing. I am afraid we shall have a heavy frost to-night. If 
we cut the tobacco to-day, we shall certainly save it. But 
one night of frost is a small matter. There may not be 
frost, or it may not hurt the crop much." Would you call 
that man a good farmer ? Would your master employ an 
overseer if he should hear him talking in this way about 
the crops ? Could any farmer be so careless as this with- 
out often losing his crops, and at last bringing himself to 
poverty ? 

My friends, your religion is a plant from heavenly seed 
scattered in your hearts. It is not a hardy plant which 
may be left without care and protection, exposed to the 
blasts and frosts of temptation and sin. Weeds and grass, 
you know, are the natural growth of the land. They need 
no care and culture. But it is not so with corn, and wheat, 
and other such things. To make these grow, you must sow 






HOW THE CHRISTIAN GROWS IN GRACE. 277 

and take care of them. It is so with religion. It is not 
a natural plant of the heart. It must be sowed there, and 
then protected and helped on. It is a delicate plant. 
It must not be neglected, even for a single night. It can 
be crushed and blasted as easily as the tenderest flower 
that has been kept in the green house all the winter. But, 
blessed be God, there is one difference between the religion 
of your hearts and the life of the plants of which we are 
speaking. If your breath be stopped for a few moments your 
life is gone. If a plant of corn be drawn up and cast for an 
hour in the sun, it is utterly withered. If the hardiest tree 
be dug up but for a few days, it may never bear leaf or 
fruit again. But the mercy of our. God endureth for ever 
and ever. He is long suffering and of great kindness. 
Our kind and compassionate Saviour begs even for the 
fruitless vine. A man once went into his garden, and saw 
a fig tree there that had not borne fruit for three years. 
As he looked at it, he said, " behold I come seeking fruit 
these three years on this tree, and find none." Then he 
said to the dresser of the garden, " cut it down, why cum- 
bereth it the ground ?" But the dresser of the garden said, 
" let it alone this year also, and I will dig about it and 
dung it ; if it bear fruit, well, if not then after that, thou 
shalt cut it down." This is the way that the blessed Jesus 
pleads for poor, delaying, fruitless sinners. God sometimes 
says, "cut them down;" but Jesus says, "let them alone 
this year also, till I shall still strive with and encourage 
them, perhaps they will do better." 

This is the only kind of religion, my friends, that will 
fit you for heaven. Many of you hope that you have been 
converted and made the children of God. But still there 
is much sin lodged in your heart yet. If a great change 

24 



278 SERMON XXIII. 

has already been made in your heart and life, its work is 
not yet done. It must be kept going. You must be made 
purer still, holier still, more and more free from sin, more 
and more earnest for God, before you can be said to be 
ripened and perfected for heaven. 

I beg you, then, to examine yourselves. Try to find out 
how much religion you have. Watch every thing around 
you, and in your heart, that looks like sin. "When you have 
prepared the ground of your garden and put in your seed, 
you are not satisfied merely to see it loot healthy and good 
as it comes up. You watch it from day to day, and desire 
to see it grow. If you see any thing like weeds springing 
up you carefully pull them out. Should the ground seem 
hard and dry, you work it that your plants may grow the 
better. Now you should do so with your own heart. If 
you would have religion grow there, you must watch it, that 
none of the weeds of sin spring up and choke the good 
seed. If you know of any sin to be rising up and taking 
possession of your heart, you must root it out and kill it 
for ever. You should watch the sins of every day, the sins 
of your thoughts, the sins of your heart, the sins of your 
temper, the sins of your tongues, the sins of your acts. 
These all keep you from growing in grace. If you do not 
keep them down they will keep you out of heaven. 

You should go in earnest prayer to God for his help. 
He will make you feel your real wants. He will show you 
in what points the world particularly tempts you, and where 
you need to be especially watchful. Your heart is very 
deceitful, and if you are not careful it will, deceive you to 
your eternal ruin. You must then beg God to help you to 
watch over your heart, to show you the smallest sins of 
your life, and give you grace to put them aside. If you 



HOW THE CHRISTIAN GROWS IN GRACE. 279 

will do this God will send you His Holy Spirit who will 
bless, and help, and guide you into all truth. He will 
shine on your path to heaven, light up all its dark places, 
help you over its rugged mountains, and point you to the 
home and the rest which remaineth for the people of God. 

CM. 

Amazing grace ! how sweet the sound 

That saves a wretch like me ! 
I once was lost, but now am found, 

"Was blind, but now I see. 

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, 

And grace my fears relieved ; 
How gracious did that grace appear 

The hour I first believed. 

Through many dangers toils and snares 

I have already come : 
'Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, 

And grace will lead me home. 

And when this flesh and heart shall fail, 

And mortal life shall cease, 
I shall possess, within the veil, 

A life of joy and peace. 

Questions. — 1. What is religion said to be like ? 2. Is sin always 
rooted out of the heart at once ? 3. Can you always see how you 
grow in religion ? 4. Are many prevented from growing in ways 
they do not think of? 5. What are some of those ways? 6. Is 
religion a tender plant? 7. Does God bear iong with his people? 
8. Should you fear sin and pray for grace ? 




SERMON XXIV. 

THE CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE 
WATER SIDE. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

He shall be like a tree planted by the waters.-— Jer. xviii. 8. 

When I was little boy my father used to tell me about a 
great and beautiful city, far off on the sea shore. But I 
could not understand what sort of a place a city was, or 
how the sea looked. So he found it very hard to tell me 
any thing about them that I could understand. One day 
he went off to a store, and when he came back, he said to 
me, " come, my son, I have brought you a picture of that 
beautiful city." When I looked at it, I saw there the 
houses stretched all along the shore. I saw the wide 
streets, and tall towers and steeples of churches; then I 
saw the wide sea stretching round it, and the ships with 
their tall masts and a great many other beautiful things. 
Then I understood what a city was, and the sea, and the 
ships with their masts, and the churches with their steeples. 
When I grew up my father took me to that city. Then he 
pointed out to me many things I had seen in the picture, 
and I remembered them very well. Now this is the way 
that God often teaches us religion. He looks upon us all 
(280) 



THR CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE WATER SIDE. 281 

as children. There are many things he tells us which we 
are too young now fully to learn. So he sets them before 
us in short and simple pictures, or parables. He wants us 
to know every thing that is good for our souls. And to 
make us learn the better; he tells them to us by compar- 
ing them to something else that we are well acquainted with. 
Now he wants to tell you what a Christian must be. So 
He takes something that you see every day. He tells you 
that Christians are like trees. In one place he says, " the 
righteous shall flourish like the palm tree, and shall spread 
abroad like the cedar." In another place he says, " blessed 
is the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord, "he 
shall be like a tree planted by the water side, that will 
bring forth his fruit in due season." And here in the text 
he says of every true Christian, " he shall be like a tree 
planted by the waters." 

When my father brought me this picture, I thought it 
was very good and kind in him to think of me so, and take 
so much trouble to teach me, and make things so easy for 
me to learn. And, oh ! is it not good and kind in the great 
God to let himself down in this way to the understanding 
of the weakest and poorest mind? In this way he tells 
us that religion was not intended only for the rich and the 
great. It is for the poor and the humble, too. He did 
not send the Bible only for the wise and learned to read, 
It is the poor man's book. It is for those who plough, and 
bow, and reap, and gather into barns, and tend their flocks 
and work in the fields and the forests. The Bible speaks 
of all these things to show you what religion is. Many of 
you cannot read the Bible. But it speaks so plainly to 
you by these pictures or parables that you can learn a great 
deal by hearing others read. I know a good old servant 

24* 



282 SERMON XXIV. 

who had been a member of the Episcopal church for many 
years. When he was on his death bed, he repeated many 
precious passages of Scripture. The minister who stood 
by his bed side was surprised to hear one who could not 
read, do this. He asked him where he had learned it. He 
answered, " I learned it, sir, from hearing the Bible read 
every Sunday in the church. Ah, sir," said he, "some say 
that is the rich man's church; but I say that is the church 
for the poor servant who cannot read as well as the master. 
There is so much of the Bible read, there every Sunday." 
You cannot read, but you can learn much by hearing the 
Bible read as this good old man did. God has cast your 
lot where you can hear the Bible read almost when you 
please, where you have many religious blessings. You 
have been brought up from your childhood among the very 
things he tells you so often in the Bible that religion is 
like. If you will listen to the Bible when it is read and 
explained, you will see something every day you go into 
the field to remind you what you ought to be as Christians. 
You may think that people who are very learned have a 
great advantage over you in this matter. It is a great 
blessing, indeed, to be learned. But learning will not carry 
a man to heaven — it never made any man a Christian. 
God tells us that not many wise — not many mighty men 
are saved. In one sense you have great advantages over 
rich, and great, and learned men. God does not go to any 
of their habits and employments to show them what reli- 
gion is. He does not tell them to go to big books to learn 
it. He does not tell them they will find it out by trying 
to make money. He does not tell them that it is like the 
honor of the world. But he goes to your employments, to 
things that you meet with erery day. Do you go into the 



THE CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE WATER SIDE. 283 

field where there is a flock of sheep ? You are reminded, 
if you have listened to the Bible of God, who calls himself 
the " Good Shepherd," — you think of your crucified 
Saviour who was " led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a 
sheep is dumb before her shearers so opened he not his 
mouth." Do you take hold of the plough to break up the 
ground ? You remember that our Saviour said " no man 
having put his hand to the plough and looking back is fit 
for the kingdom of heaven." Do you go into the orchard 
to gather the rich fruit ? You remember that Jesus said 
"herein is my Father glorified that ye bear much fruit." 
Do you go into the woods to cut down the tall trees ? You 
remember that Christians are said to be "like a tree 
planted by the waters." This is the way that God suits his 
word to your understanding. You cannot say that you do 
not know enough to be Christians, that because you cannot 
read God will not hold you to a strict account. A faithful 
old black preacher, while preaching on this very point, 
once said, " My brethren, some people will tell you that 
your minds are too dark and ignorant to be Christians and 
to enjoy religion. But this is not true. The sun is some- 
times shut up behind a cloud so that you cannot see it — 
you cannot point where it is. Yet you can see all around 
you, light enough to answer your purposes. You work by 
that light. You enjoy that light, and for all common things 
it answers just as well as if there was no cloud, and the sun 
was pouring down upon you." It is just so about the Bible. 
You cannot read. The Bible is hid from you just like the 
sun behind a cloud. 

Still you see the light of the Bible shining all around 
you. You know what religion is. You see the light of the 
Bible shining in others. You feel its blessed influences and 



284 SERMON XXIV. 

have enough of it to light up your way to heaven. Oh, 
how thankful you ought to be that God has been so good 
to you ! You ought to love and serve him with all your 
heart for it. You ought to grow in strength and beauty 
like a tree planted by the water; and bring forth much 
fruit to the glory of God. But let us see why Christians 
are said to be "like trees planted by the waters." 

1. A tree planted by the water has every thing to 
make it grow. It has the fresh stream always running to 
water its roots. It has the sun, and the rain, and the dews 
of heaven. So with the Christian. He has the streams 
of heaven's grace flowing all round him. He has the light, 
and the breath, and the rain and dew of God's holy spirit. 
God deals with Christians just as he does with trees and 
plants. The tree cannot grow without rain, and sunshine, 
and soil. The Christian cannot grow in religion without 
the dews and sunshine of God's grace. But there is this 
difference. The trees cannot do any thing to make them- 
selves grow. But God has commanded you to " work out 
your own salvation." Which means that you must do all 
you can to grow in religion. He says he will give his spirit 
to them that ask him. If you wish to grow in grace or 
religion, as a tree grows in strength, you must go to God 
in prayer and ask for the help of his spirit. He says, 
" ask and it shall be given you." God does not give with a 
stingy hand. He loves to give freely and abundantly. He 
says, " Open wide thy mouth and I will fill it." Look how 
he treats the trees of the forest. How seldom does he 
ever keep back the rain from them ! and do you think he 
will be backward to pour out his spirit upon the souls who 
long to grow up in fitness for heaven ? He has promised 
to do this. He will not fail to fulfil it. But do not forget 



THE CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE WATER SIDE. 285 

that the promise is only to those who ask him. If you 
will not heartily pray for his help, then you may know that 
his promise does not reach you. 

But many persons say, " why should I do any thing ? 
Why may I not stand still and let God do all the work of 
grace in my heart ? The trees, you say, cannot grow with- 
out rain and sunshine, and I cannot grow in religion with- 
out the help of God's grace, why may I not wait until God 
shall make me grow by his grace ?" 

Remember that trees cannot do any thing of themselves. 
But God has made you with far greater powers than they 
have. You are the noblest work of his hands. He has 
given you minds to think, and hearts to feel, and hands to 
act. He has not given these to the trees. He has made 
you in his own image, and but a little lower than the 
angels. Then he commands you to work out your salva- 
tion; to do his will; to give all diligence to make your 
calling and election sure. The difference between you 
and the trees is, that you can do all these things — the trees 
cannot. 

My friends, which one of you was ever hindered from 
sowing- your seed, or planting, or pruning your orchard, and 
doing your very best to make a good crop because you 
could not make the grain grow, or the trees bear fruit ? 
Your souls are spiritual orchards. Our Saviour calls them 
"vineyards." St. Paul says, " ye are God's husbandry." 
Your souls need the rain and sunshine of God's grace. 
You must pray for that grace. Your souls need to be en- 
riched. You must try to improve the ground of your 
hearts by coming to hear God's word read, and by joining 
in the worship of his name. Your souls need to be weeded 
and cleaned of all sin. You must search and examine 



286 SEEMON XXIV. 

your hearts to see that no wicked thoughts and wishes are 
there. Now if you will do this — if you will be careful to 
examine, and watch, and weed your hearts, God will make 
you to grow in grace. You will grow strong and fruitful 
in religion just like the tree that is watered, and pruned, 
and protected. , You will grow strong in the Lord and in 
the power of his might. Then many holy graces will 
spring up in your heart. Then you will be as a tree by the 
waters, and bring forth much fruit to the glory of God. 

2. True Christians are like trees, because trees thrive by 
the sap that flows through them. The sap keeps the tree 
alive. Belt a tree and stop the passage of its sap and it will 
die. The Bible says, "the trees of the Lord are full of 
sap." Psalm civ. 15. That is, they are full of Christian 
graces and Christian feeling. If you have not the sap of 
God's love in you, you can no more bring forth the fruits 
of religion than you can make a tree grow without sap. 
Our Saviour lived in a land full of beautiful vines, which bore 
the richest fruit. Once when he was talking to his disciples, 
he said to them, " I am the vine, ye are the branches; as 
the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the 
vine, no more can ye except ye abide in me — without me 
ye can do nothing. But he that abideth in me, and I in 
him, the same bringeth forth much 'fruit." Now can you 
tell me what our Saviour means by abiding in Kim ? I will 
try to tell you. You know that if you cut a limb from 
a tree, or a branch from a vine, that branch must die. Now 
all sin cuts the Christian off from Christ. You may call 
yourselves Christians, and yet you may not abide in Christ. 
You may tell your experience and be baptized and go to 
church, and sing, and pray, and hear sermons, and yet not 
abide in Christ. If you live in any sin, great or small, 



THE CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE WATER SIDE. 287 

that sin -will cut you off, more or less from Christ. And 
cut off from Christ, you can no more bring forth fruit to 
God, than a branch cut off from the vine can bear fruit. 
If you would abide in Christ, you must clear your hearts 
of all that pride and self-will, and all those wicked thoughts, 
and wishes, and words, and acts, which cut you off from 
Christ. 

To abide in Christ, means to be joined to him, to have 
one mind with him, to love him as one from whom all your 
strength, and hope, and happiness must come. You must try 
to keep the sap of Christ's love flowing through your hearts. 
This will give you spiritual life and strength. This will 
lead you to obey and serve God, in spirit and in truth. This 
is the way that you must bring forth much fruit to God's 
glory. What is the sap of a tree intended for ? What pur- 
pose is it to answer ? It is to make the tree bring forth 
fruit. If it does not do this, it had as well not be in the 
tree. It is just so with your Christian graces. If your 
sap of Christian love does not make you live good and holy 
lives, you had as well not have it. Our Saviour said, 
" herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit — 
he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth 
forth much fruit." Do you want to know whether your 
hearts are right before God ? I will tell you how to try 
them. Turn your eyes into those hearts, look at their daily 
thoughts, look at your conduct. Tell me whether there is 
a pure and holy sap of love flowing through your hearts ? 
Then turn to your outward life, and tell me if that love 
makes you live pure and holy lives ? If you are not living 
pure and holy lives, you may know that the sap of pure 
Christian love is not flowing through your hearts. If you 
see a tree which does not grow, nor blossom, nor put out 



288 SERMON XXIV. 

new shoots in the spring, you may know there is something 
wrong about the sap. But if it grows, and brings forth 
fruit in abundance, you may know that the sap is in a 
healthy state. So, if you look at your lives, and find that 
you are not obeying God's laws — not governing your tem- 
pers — not bridling your tongues — not curbing your pas- 
sions — not fighting against sin, you may kno>v there is 
something wrong about your hearts. The sap of God's 
love does not flow well there. Whatever you do, do not 
forget that all who are true Christians in their hearts are 
true Christians in their lives. 

3. Trees planted by the water generally have deep and 
strong roots, tall stems, and wide branches. True Chris- 
tians are like these trees. True Christians have the root 
of faith strong in Christ. Their hearts turn upward, and 
look towards heaven. Their hands stretch out around them 
in acts of charity and good works. If a tree be cut off 
from its roots, it will die. So will all your goodness perish 
if you cut it off from faith. If the root of a tree be strong 
and healthy, it will give strength and health to a large tree. 
So if your faith be good and true, it will keep alive and 
useful — a strong tree of righteousness. The stem of a tree 
does not stand u>? oj its own strength, but by the strength 
and depth of its roots. And your righteousness does not 
stand by itself, but by the strength of your faith in Christ. 
If the roots of a tree be shallow, the storms of heaven may 
easily blow it over, and it perishes. But if they be deeply 
fixed, the tree stands firm, and strengthens under the blast. 
So, if your root of faith be shallow in Christ, the storms of 
temptation and trial may easily upset you. In this way, 
thousands fall like the ti^ees of the forest, to rise no more. 
But if, like a tree planted by the water, your faith strikes 



THE CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE WATER SIDE. 289 

deep in Christ, temptation and sin may beat upon you ; for 
a while you may give and bend under their power, but you 
will soon come back again to your proper place, still 
straighter and stronger than before. These are some of 
the reasons why sincere Christians are said, in the Bible, 
to be "like a tree planted by the water." A tree planted 
by the water ought to grow — so ought Christians. A tree 
thrives and brings forth fruit by its sap — Christians grow 
and abound in good works, by the sap of Christian love 
and feeling. A tree generally has deep and strong roots — • 
Christians ought to be rooted and grounded in Christ. 
Trees lift their heads up towards heaven — the hearts of 
Christians ought to turn constantly towards God. Trees 
spread their branches wide around them, and make a cool, 
and delicious shade from the sun — Christians ought to 
stretch out their hands in acts of charity and love to all men, 
comforting all who are in the burning furnace of affliction. 
They ought to visit the sick — comfort the distressed — help 
the poor, and hold out an inviting hand to sinners to come 
and seek shelter under the cross of Christ. 

The Psalmist David tells us, that "the righteous shall 
flourish like the palm tree, they shall grow as a cedar in 
Lebanon." The palm tree grows very straight and tall. 
The cedar tree grows very strong. These are the noblest, 
and longest-lived trees in the world. The Christian is said 
to be like them. The Christian is the highest style of man. 
He is said to be "more excellent than his neighbour." The 
Christian is straight up and down in all his doings. He is 
straight in the strictest truth — in the purest honesty — in 
all his daily plans and ways. The Christian rises above the 
world. His heart is lifted above all its meanness, and its 
sins. The Christian can never perish. If a tree be cut 

25 



290 SERMON XXIV. 

down, it will sprout again at its roots. The Christian must 
be cut down by the great axe of death, but the sap of Jesus 
Christ still flows in his soul. He will spring up again to 
immortality. Then he will be straighter than ever — purer, 
higher, fuller of holiness and good fruits. Such Chris- 
tians as these, Christ will own on the great day when we 
must all stand before him. He will remember them as the 
trees which his own hand had planted — which he had 
watered with his own blood, and nourished with his own 
Spirit. Then he will tell all about how they took root, and 
gathered strength, and bore fruit in the barren soil of this 
world. And then he will take and plant them in the courts 
of the Lord's house above, to grow and ripen to all 
eternity. 

A gentleman had a beautiful tree in his garden, which 
he dearly loved. He had planted it with his own hands, 
with great care. He had watered, and protected, and en- 
riched it, until it grew and bore beautiful blossoms. At 
last he sold his possessions, and was about to move away 
to a far distant country. But he could not bear the 
thought of leaving that tree behind. Yet he could not 
carry its trunk and branches along with him. So he went 
to the tree, and looked at it for a long time. Then, with 
a sad and heavy heart he cut it down, and cast away its 
trunk and beautiful branches, to moulder where they had 
fallen. But the roots he carefully dug up, wrapped them 
well, and boxed them, and borf them off to his new home. 
There he planted them in a rich soil, and a delightful cli- 
mate. And the tree put forth its sprouts. It grew and 
flourished with new life and brought forth its blossoms and 
its fruits, no more to be cut down and removed. 

My Christian friends, you are that tree. Jesus is the 



THE CHRISTIAN LIKE A TREE BY THE WATER SIDE. 291 

great dresser of the vineyard. He has gone to prepare a 
place for you, that where he is, there ye may be also. Only 
be faithful in watching and praying against sin — be fruit- 
ful in all good works — prove yourself the " trees of right- 
eousness," and when he comes to gather his people to him- 
self, he will remember you as one of his, that he loved and 
watered. Then, though he cut you down by the hand of 
death, and cast away all that now seems to adorn your out- 
ward appearance, it will be only to carry you to his home 
prepared in the heavens. There you shall be transplanted. 
You shall grow and ripen for ever. You shall have your 
place there on the banks of the river of life. You shall 
bring forth fruit iri the paradise of God for ever, and " your 
leaf shall not wither." 

' CM. 

See, in the vineyard of the Lord, 

A barren fig tree stands ; 
It yields no fruit, no blossom bears, 

Though planted by his hands. 

From year to year he seeks for fruit, 

And still no fruit is found ; 
It stands, amid the living trees, 

A cumberer of the ground. 

But see ! the kind Redeemer pleads, 
The barren tree to spare ; 
" Let justice still withhold his hand, 
And grant another year. 

Perhaps some means of grace untried v 

May reach the stony heart ; 
The softening dews of heavenly grace 

May life anew impart. 



292 SERMON XXIV. 

But if these means should prove in vain, 

And still no fruit is found ; 
Then mercy shall no longer plead, 

But justice cut it down. 

Questions. — 1. What are Christians said here to be like ? 2. What 
is a parable ? 3. Was the the Bible intended only for those who are 
learned ? 4. Does the Bible draw many of its lessons from the 
things that you see every day ? 5. What do you see every day that 
Christians are said to be like ? 6. What advantage has a tree by 
the water? 7. What advantage has the Christian from God's grace? 
8. What makes the tree thrive and blossom ? 9. What has the Chris- 
tian like the sap of the tree ? 10. What is said about the roots of a 
tree by the water ? 11. How must the Christian's faith in Christ be ? 
12. What is said about the tallness of the tree ? 13. What will 
Christ do with all the trees of righteousness he has planted ? 






SERMON XXY. 

PARABLE OF THE SOWER. 

BY THE REV. GEO. ADIE. 

Behold, a sower went forth to sow; and when he sowed, some 
seeds fell by the wayside, and the fowls came and devoured them 
up : Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth ; 
and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth • 
And when the sun was up, they were scorched ; and because they had 
not root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns ; and the 
thorns sprung up, and choked them : But other fell into good 
ground and brought forth fruit, some an hundred-fold, some sixty- 
fold, some thirty-fold. — Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. — 
St. Matt. xiii. 3—9. 

These are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ. They 
were spoken under rather peculiar circumstances. After 
preaching in the synagogue — a Jewish house of worship — 
the Saviour walked down to the sea shore. A large crowd 
of people gathered round him there, to hear him preach. 
He was always anxious to seize every opportunity to do 
good. He stepped into a boat, and told them to push it 
a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down in 
it, and taught the people as they stood along by the sea 
eide. 

In his sermon, he introduced the parable which we have 
just read. By which he intended to make known, chiefly, 

25* (293) 



294 SERMON XXV. 

how the gospel would be received among men. And in 
order to suit his teaching to the understanding of all who 
heard him, so that the most plain and simple minds might 
understand what he meant, he used an illustration with 
which every one was familiar. It is called in the Holy Scrip- 
tures a parable, which means a comparison. Things 
spiritual are compared to the things of the world. And 
thus that which is often hard to understand, is made plain 
by comparing it to, or explaining it by things which are 
plain and simple to us. 

Our Saviour often used this way of teaching. He ex- 
plained the close union between himself and his followers, 
by what binds the vine and its branches together. His 
watchful care over his disciples, by that of a shepherd over 
his flock; the importance of making full preparation to 
meet God by the case of the wise and foolish virgins. 

So when he tells us how the gospel would be received 
and what effect it would have on different hearers — he used 
the words of our text. It is called the parable of the 
sower. Here he takes the case of one who went forth to 
sow seed in a field, having different kinds of soil. 

1. This parable, you see, divides all men into four classes. 
The first, is said to be like to a road or highway running 
through or round the field — into which some of the seed 
of the sower would fall. But- not being covered in by the 
plough, the fowls of the air would find it and pick it up. 

2. The second, is said to be like that part of a field 
where it was a broad rock covered over with a thin soil. 
This being soon warmed through by the sun, the seed would 
quickly spring up, but ere long would wither and die for 
the want of moisture. 

3. The third, is said to be like that part of the field 



PARABLE OF THE SOWER. 295 

where the thorns grew so rank as to choke up and- over- 
shadow the plants so that thej brought forth no fruit. 

4. The fourth and last class, is said to be like that part 
of the field, where the soil is richer, and in a better state 
of preparation ; which brought forth fruit, some more and 
some less. 

Now these four classes are intended to embrace all man- 
kind. In one or the other, every hearer of the gospel is 
to be placed. And the Saviour himself afterwards gives 
the explanation of the parable. He makes the application 
of it to men under the preaching of the gospel. He tells 
us first, that " when any one heareth the word of the king- 
dom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked 
one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. 
This is he which received seed by the wayside." 

The "word of the kingdom" of course means the word 
of the kingdom of heaven. That kingdom over which 
Christ rules and which he has prepared for his people, and 
concerning which his gospel is now preached. To raise up 
men for this kingdom the seed or doctrines of the gospel 
are sown broadcast in their hearts. The sower that scat- 
ters the seed is the king — the Lord Jesus Christ — either by 
himself, or by his ministers. Preaching to men is sowing 
seed, and their hearts the ground into which it is to be 
received. But how sad is the thought, that the hearts of 
any sinners should be like the hard trodden path, into which 
the seed cannot take root ; that the word should lie there 
like the seed, till the fowls of the air come and take it 
away! The thought calls forth the earnest anxieties of 
ministers in behalf of such hearers. They know their 
dreadful danger ; and yet they are often discouraged in 
their attempts to do them good. They feel afraid that their 



296 SERMON XXV. 

work is all in vain. For the conduct of many shows, too 
plainly, that the seed of the gospel is falling on hearts hard 
and trodden by sin, into which there is but little likelihood 
it can ever take root. 

Oftentimes are we reminded, even to this day, of the 
wayside hearers spoken of by the Saviour. When we see 
men listless and inattentive in church, gazing at others, or 
evidently not listening to the word preached, we know that 
the words spoken will bring forth no fruit. They are not 
received into the heart, and therefore, can not take root. 
They merely fall upon the ear, and have no influence on the 
conscience. When men give themselves up to sin and the 
world, and never hear the gospel preached, or read God's 
holy word, we cannot expect them to be saved ! we have 
no hope for them while they go on in such a course of life. 
None who believe the Bible can think they will be saved. 
And how much more hope is there for those who, though 
they may hear the gospel, never receive into their hearts — 
who never follow its teachings, but on the other hand, live 
in daily violation of its commands? ' Unless the gospel 
takes root and brings forth fruit in the heart of the sinner 
it is sown in vain. He is not ready to meet his God ! For 
"unless you repent, says the Saviour, you must all likewise 
perish." Therefore, unless the word is received by the 
hearer and brings forth in him the fruit of repentance he 
cannot be saved. 

The more regularly any one attends church, and the 
more respect paid by him to the religion of the Saviour, 
the more he places himself in the way to be benefitted, and 
the greater the probability that the seed will some day take 
root, spring up, and bring forth fruit. But unless such a 
result be produced he is utterly unfit for the kingdom of 



PAKABLE OF THE SOWER. 297 

heaven, and can never enter into it. His damnation may 
not be as great as that of the scoffer at religion, or of him 
who never entered the door of a church ; but still he must 
take his abode with all the nations that forget God. May 
you not, my dear hearers, be found among the " wayside 
hearers." 

The second class are called " stony ground hearers." Of 
these the Saviour says, " The same is he that heareth the 
word of God, and anon with joy receiveth it ; yet hath he 
not root in himself; but dureth for a while : for when tribu- 
lation and persecution arise'th because of the word, by and 
by he is offended." 

These hearers generally, are taught in the way of salva- 
tion. They listen to the gospel with some pleasure. They 
hastily embrace it. They are worked upon either by the 
beauty of religion, or they are moved by some excitement 
of religious feeling, and are hurried on to make a profes- 
sion of the religion of Christ, before they have thought 
enough on the subject. Their hearts are as proud and their 
wills as contrary as though they had never heard the gos- 
pel. They have no abiding and convicting sense of sin, and 
of course have never truly repented before God. Their 
knowledge of religion is very shallow, their conduct is 
governed by wrong motives, their hearts are not the subjects 
of divine grace. 

Persons of this character 3how oftentimes, much zeal and 
earnestness for the cause of Christ. For a time they run 
well — but " their goodness is as the morning cloud, and as 
the early dew," — it goeth away. Their hearts are not 
properly moved. Then, when " persecution and temptation 
ariseth" they are not able to resist. Like the corn in the thin 
soil on the rock, they have no deepness of earth ; the root 



298 



SERMON XXV. 



of their profession is scorched and dried up, and t;ie blade 
dies. They had not been rooted and grounded in Christ 
by faith, and therefore, had no vigor of strength to be over- 
come. How dreadfully sinful it is, that in a matter of such 
vast concern as religion, any one should not give it the most 
serious thought ! 0, how should you look closely at every 
feeling and every doctrine ! To make a mistake here is to 
ruin for ever your interests in the world to come. 0, who 
can tell the worth of the soul ! What is to be compared with 
it ? Every other interest sinks into nothing when brought 
side by side with it. And yet many neglect to attend to 
it altogether. Others who do pretend to take care of its 
welfare, are so careless as to let Satan cheat them, and ruin 
it at last. 

If it be necessary to give strict attention to our interests 
in this world, why not give the same attention in regard to 
the things of the next world? If it requires strict watch 
and much close examination to protect and take care of 
the things of the body — why not show the same caution and 
industry in regard to the soul ? Is it enough to unite with 
the church of God, merely because we like its doctrines ? 
Or is it enough to have had our hearts and feelings excited 
on the subject, and then throw ourselves among the people 
of God, because we have felt some faint desire to enjoy 
eternal bliss with them ? No, my hearer, the more import- 
ant the subject, the greater the attention you should give 
it — the more it contains, the more cautious and careful 
should we be in making our decisions. We should regard 
the soul as worth more to us than ten thousand worlds 
could be. We should weigh well every doctrine which we 
receive, mark every duty required, and make thorough -work 
of the soul's salvation; convince ourselves that we do truly 



PARABLE OF THE SOWER. 299 

repent us of our sins — that we have a living and abiding 
faith in Christ, that we earnestly desire his salvation and 
are willing to do any thing in our power to have it. Then 
we shall have root in ourselves — then we shall find the 
grace of God enough for our day and trial. When the 
scorching suns of persecution shall fall upon us, or the 
withering heat of adversity reach us, or the blighting 
power of temptation come, we shall still grow and flourish 
in the vineyard of our Saviour. We shall neither wither 
nor droop ; but grow till fit for the Master's use. 

May you not take your stand among the " stony ground 
hearers." 

We come next to the third class, who "receive seed 
among thorns.'* Of this class, says the Saviour, "Is he 
that heareth the word : and the cares of this world, and the 
deceitfulness of riches, choke the word and he becometh 
unfruitful." 

Now, such hearers often make a fair show in the church. 
They hear the word, receive it, and profess to follow it. But 
their hearts are like ground overrun with thorns and trouble- 
some weeds. The seed would bring forth fruit if they would 
j*ut out the world, but they try to serve two masters — God 
and mammon. Thus the good seed is choked, and the fruit 
of proud and wicked hearts only ripens. They wish to be 
religious. At times they make some efforts to become so-; 
but they cannot give up their hold upon the world. Hence 
they try to unite the two and utterly fail of bringing forth 
any fruit to the glory and honour of their Saviour. 

The love of sin has so strong a hold on the hearts of some 
men. they make up their minds to give up every thing else 
for it. This takes up nearly all their waking moments, and 
takes away many hours of sleep from them. They under- 



300 



SERMON XXV. 



stand the gospel plan of salvation, and make some efforts 
to comply with it, but so far as their sins are concerned, 
there must be a compromise, they cannot give them up; 
the consequence is, at the last, sin and the world are made 
their only God. 

Others are equally devoted to some idol, that wins their 
hearts from Christ, and others again, to the general love 
of worldly and sinful objects. Things laivful in themselves, 
they place above the things of God, — this is sin. They go 
on in violation of the commands of God, and thus they 
bring forth no fruit. To bring forth fruit to Christ, the 
heart must be kept as free as possible from all things sin- 
ful; and every thing else lawful in itself must be kept in 
obedience to the love of Christ. Your religion must be the 
first and chief thing with you, all things else must be 
secondary. 

Man has both a body and a soul : he owes duties to both. 
But as the body is merely a house of clay in which the soul 
lives ; as it is perishable, and must soon decay ; as the other 
is immortal and will live for ever, his chief concern must 
be for that which is lasting and invaluable. And yet, the 
body has so many immediate wants, and surrounded as 
he is by objects of sense, he is apt to neglect the soul in 
attending to the wants of the body. He has also a sinful 
nature, which Satan is ever seeking to take the advantage 
of, so that the duties of the body, and the sinfulness of his 
flesh, will always fill his heart and leave no room for the 
things of the soul and eternity, unless through the aid of 
the Spirit he cuts down and removes that which is useless, 
and injurious. The " cares of the world" are very apt to 
drive out the things of Christ, unless kept within proper 
control. This class of hearers come nearer the kingdom 



PARABLE OF THE SOWER. 301 

of heaven than either of the former ; but they will yet miss 
it, unless they bring their love of the world in subjection to 
the love of Christ. 

Beware, my hearer, that you become not entangled in 
the same way, — and through too much love of the fleeting 
and perishable things of this world, lose your interest in 
the eternal world. 

But we come now to a better class of hearers than either 
of the others, — to hearts that receive the word, and bring 
forth fruit. Here we find the. ground rich, and compara- 
tively free from noxious weeds, so that it will bring forth 
some return for the efforts of the labourer. These " hear 
the word and understand it," and " bring forth fruit, some 
an hundred-fold, some sixty, some thirty." How different 
their condition from that of those which we have been con- 
sidering ! These are as far superior to the others, as is the 
wise man who builds his house upon a rock, to the fool who 
builds it on the sand. They not only stand under the trials 
of persecution and temptation, but at the hour of death, 
when the floods of God's wrath are poured forth, which will 
destroy his adversaries, they will be found still standing 
and under the smiles of God's reconciled countenance, — 
when the others will be swept away as with the besom of 
destruction. These had received the word into good "and 
honest hearts," anxious to learn the truth and will of God, 
in order to believe and obey them. In all such hearts, the 
gospel finds easy entrance, and yields an abundant harvest. 
He, who earnestly desires to know the will of his God, and 
is anxious to perform it, will not receive his word in vain. 

When by prayer, and earnest efforts, the heart seeks to 
know its duty, it will both receive it and fulfil it. It will 
strive and agonize against every thing believed to be of the 

26 



302 



SERMON XXV. 



nature of sin. Having learned that the Lord Jesus Christ 
has died in his stead, to redeem him from sin, — that he 
offers salvation to every one who will accept it through 
faith in his blood, — that to be his disciple he must "take 
up his cross and follow him," he day by day fights against 
the devil, and strives to become more conformed to his 
image. The seed is received into a broken and contrite 
heart, through a faith which " works by love and over- 
comes the world." The seed sinks into such hearts, and 
cannot be plucked away by Satan ; it also strikes deep root, 
springs upward, and will bring forth an abundant crop. 
All will not be alike faithful, but all will yield a rich in- 
crease of the fruits of the spirit, which are the effects and 
evidence of true repentance and faith in Christ. All will 
finally be received into Christ's kingdom, and be made 
kings and princes in the presence of their Lord. 

Now, in conclusion, I earnestly beseech you, my hearers, 
to look at the different conditions of those who hear the 
gospel. Bring together the different portions of the field, 
by which our Saviour intends to show you the difference 
between them. Look first at the barren wayside in which 
there is not a blade to be found — then to the stony ground 
when the plants are withered and dried up — and then to 
the few slender barren stalks overshadowed by briars and 
thorns — and lastly to the good ground where the wheat is 
waving before you, with full and ripe grains. And when 
you behold these, remember they are an apt emblem of the 
state of men before God : that in every part of the field 
you find likenesses of hearers of the gospel. And then, 
0, be faithful to your conscience, and say to which class 
you belong. Kather resolve that by the grace of God, if 
you have heretofore been a " wayside " or " stony ground 



PARABLE OF THE SOWER. 303 

hearer," or belonged to those who have received the word 
among thorns, you will no longer remain such. Then at 
once take your stand among those who receive the seed in 
good ground. Then the Saviour will regard you with plea- 
sure, and finally gather you into his garner. 

CM. 

Almighty God ? thy word is cast, 

Like seed into the ground ; 
Now let the dew of heaven descend, 

And righteous fruits be found. 









Let not the foe of Christ and man 

This holy seed remove ; 
But give it root in every heart, 

To bring forth fruits of love. 

Let not the world's deceitful cares 

The rising plant destroy ; 
But let it yield a hundred-fold, 

The fruits of peace and joy. 

Oft as the precious seed is sown, 

Thy quickening grace bestow 
That all, whose souls the truth receive, 

Its saving power may know. 

Questions. — 1. What is this parable called? 2. What is a parable? 
3. What becomes of seed scattered on the hard road ? 4. What is 
this hard ground said to be like ? 5. What becomes of seed scattered 
in a broad rock with but little soil? 6. What is this thin soil like ? 
7. What becomes of seed scattered among weeds ? 8. What are these 
weeds like ? 9. What becomes of good seed sowed in good ground 
well broken up? 10. What is this good ground like ? 11. Will the 
ground bring forth seed unless you work it ? 12. What must the 
Christian do if he would bring forth fruit to God ? 



SERMON XXVI. 

THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

The foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil ; for our lamps 
are gone out. — Matt. xxv. 8. 

The Saviour of sinners tells us that the kingdom of 
heaven is like a marriage. Before I explain his meaning 
I must tell you how the people did a great many years ago 
when they got married. They were married at night, 
pretty much as the people marry now. But then it was the 
custom for the bridegroom to take his bride to his own 
house the same night, and soon after the ceremony was 
over. And the way they did this must have been very 
beautiful and striking. Ten ladies, who were called virgins, 
were invited to escort them home. These virgins were to 
be dressed in elegant wedding dresses ; and each one to 
have a burning lamp in her hand. Then they all met on 
the lawn, in front of the house, where the young couple 
were married, and waited for them. When the bridegroom 
led his bride out to take her to his own home, these virgins 
received them with shouts of joy — saying, "behold, the 
bridegroom cometh." They then formed a train, and hold- 
ing their lamps so as to cast a brilliant light around their 
path, they escorted them to their new house. There a rich 
(304) 



THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. ' 305 

feast was ready for them. Then those who had been 
invited and were ready to go in to the feast, went in, and 
the door was shut. All strangers — all who were not invited, 
were carefully kept out. 

Now, suppose you were attending such a wedding as this. 
The marriage is over — the bridegroom is about to take his 
bride to her new home. Near the house are ten virgins. 
They are all beautifully dressed. They all have burning 
lamps in their hands. They are all waiting for the bride- 
groom to come forth. Keep your eyes on this picture. 
Look at the house; the door opens. There comes the bride- 
groom, his bride is leaning on his arm. Now the virgins 
begin to shout, "behold the bridegroom cometh." But 
listen — from the crowd of virgins another cry is heard. It 
is a cry of sorrow. Five of these virgins are saying to 
the others, "give us of your oil, for our lamps are gone out." 
In the moment of their greatest need they find that their 
lamps begin to burn dimly. At last they go entirely out. 
And now they cry to their companions for help. But the 
other virgins say, "no, we cannot help you ; we have no oil 
to spare. Not so, lest there be not enough for us and you ; 
but go ye rather to them that sell and buy for yourselves." 
Finding that their oil was gone, these five foolish virgins 
could do nothing but go in search of more oil. They ran 
to get it. While they are gone the train moves on to the 
bridegroom's house. The doors are wide open; every thing 
is in readiness for them; the table is set and prepared; 
the house lighted up. They all go in and then the door is 
shut. Presently a loud knock is heard at the door. Behold, 
the other virgins have come. But the door is shut. They 
were not ready at the right time. They knock and ask for 
admittance. They say, "Lord, Lord, open to us;" but he 

26* 



306 SERMON XXVI. 

answers, "I know you not." Now, let me tell you in a few 
words what these things mean. This bridegroom means the 
Lord Jesus Christ. These virgins mean professing Chris- 
tians. These lamps mean the professions they make. This 
oil means the Holy Ghost which Jesus pours into the hearts 
of his people. This light means the hope, and joy, and 
holiness of the Christian. This wedding means that great 
day when Jesus will come to meet his people. Let us look 
at the conduct of these virgins, and see whether there are 
not very many professing Christians now like them. 

1. There are two kinds of virgins here, the wise and the 
foolish. And there are two kinds of professing Christians 
in the world. Those who are Christians, indeed, and those 
who are Christians only in appearance and name. In many 
things these professors are all very much alike. All the 
virgins wore the same kind of dress ; all had lamps ; all 
their lamps burned for a time ; all said they were waiting 
for the bridegroom. But when the bridegroom was coming, 
the lamps of five of them went out and they were in the 
darkness. So it is with many professing Christians. You 
would think from their appearance and talk and professions, 
that they were ready to meet the Lord Jesus Christ and go 
with him rejoicing into the kingdom of heaven. But when 
that great day comes their oil will begin to give out; their 
professions will fail ; they will not be ready to meet Grod. 
While some will shout in joy, "behold the bridegroom 
cometh, go ye out to meet him;" these foolish professors 
will be heard crying in bitterness and sorrow, " 0, give us 
of your oil, our lamps are gone out" — in other words, 
" Lord have mercy on us. Send down thy Holy Spirit 
into our hearts ; give us more time that we may go and get 
ready for the kingdom." They will send for the minister 



THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. 307 

of the gospel, and ask Christians to pray for them. But 
that will be no time to get ready. The bridegroom has come. 
The people of God go with him into heaven. The door is 
shut and no man can open it. Look well then to your 
hearts. See that they are right. Every day lift up your 
soul to God, and earnestly pray, " search me, God, and 
know my heart, try me and know my thoughts, and see 
if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way 
everlasting." 

2. These foolish virgins had been very careless and 
thoughtless about their oil. * They had some oil ; but not 
enough. There was enough to answer their purposes for a 
little while. But they had none in store to meet their wants 
when that was gone. Their lamps had been burning from 
early in the night until midnight ; and all this time their 
oil was burning away. And when the cry was made, "be- 
hold the bridegroom cometh," they saw that their lights 
were going out. This oil, you remember, means the power 
and grace of the Holy Ghost which God pours into your 
hearts. It means that power which makes you feel that you 
are a lost, undone sinner. Which makes you look to Christ 
as a great and precious Saviour. It means that power which 
softens your heart when it is hard, and warms it when it 
is cold, and quiets it when it is troubled. Now there are 
many professors of religion who seem to have the oil of 
God's holy spirit in them. Their consciences have got 
to work and awakened their feelings for a little while, or 
they have been alarmed by sickness, or something else. 
With these feelings they have been easily satisfied. Then 
they have made a profession of religion, been baptized and 
joined the church. For a time they keep up that profes- 
sion. But after a while their oil begins to give out. They 



308 SEKMON XXVI. 

show this in many ways. They become careless about 
praying in secret. They lounge about and spend the Sun- 
day in sleeping rather than in attending church, or in hear- 
ing a sermon read. They murmur under their trials and 
duties. They need to be watched in their work and conduct. 
They give way to harsh temper. They become quarrelsome 
and speak unkindly of other professing Christians. And 
yet all this time they still keep up their profession of reli- 
gion. But these things all show that their oil is burning 
away — that their lights are burning dimly — that while they 
have the lamps of profession *they have no store of oil to 
fill them and keep them brightly burning in their hours of 
greatest need. When death comes upon such .professors, it 
will find them just like these foolish virgins. Instead of 
being ready to meet the Saviour and Judge of all, and go 
in with him to the feast of heaven, they will be heard like 
these foolish virgins, saying, " give us of your oil, for our 
lamps are gone out." They will begin to pray for God's 
mercy. They will pour out curses on their past life ; yet 
they will have some hope. They will go and knock at the 
door of heaven, and say, " Lord, Lord, open to us." But 
it will all be in vain. They were careless about their reli- 
gion. They loved the world and themselves too much. 
They did not watch over their hearts; they did not pray 
earnestly ; they did not fight against sin, and the devil, and 
their own wicked hearts. They were satisfied to go along 
just as other people did, careless about God's favour — • 
about death — about judgment — about eternity. Then when 
these things come upon them they are not ready. Their 
"lamps are gone out." Look well, then, to your hearts. 
Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation. Give 
all diligenee to make your calling and election sure. 



THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. 309 

" Watch, therefore, for ye know not what hour the Lord 
cometh." 

3. Now see what all this brought the foolish virgins to. 
Their lamps went out at the very time they needed them 
most. It was at midnight, and the bridegroom was com- 
ing to meet them. How many careless, professing Chris- 
tians will find themselves just in this unhappy state ! A 
man was once about to build a house. He looked about 
for a good place to put it. At last he fixed upon a beauti- 
ful spot, where there was no rock— where there would be 
no need of much work to get it ready, and there he built 
his house. It was a handsome building, and seemed to be 
strong. The winds blew upon it, but it stood firm. Now 
and then, indeed, it was felt to shake as if it might give 
way, but it stood there for years. At last a heavy tempest 
swept over it. It fell to the earth, and buried all its in- 
habitants beneath it. The truth was, it had been built upon 
a sandy foundation. So, many a professing Christian may 
seem to be strong in the Lord — he may stand firm for a 
time — and a long time. It is not every affliction, or dis- 
appointment, or trial, that will overthrow his false hopes. 
But when the day of great trial and judgment comes, he 
will be "weighed in the balance, and found wanting." 
When you have planted your corn very shallow, it will 
soon spring up, and for a time look as well as any other 
corn. It is not every little breeze that will blow it over — 
nor every bright sun that will scorch it. But if a heavy 
tempest should come, it beats it to the earth. Or if a long 
drought should set in, its leaves begin to curl, and it is 
soon burnt up. It is so with many profesors of religion. 
Thousands are every day deceiving themselves in religion. 
And what is more they never wake up to their danger, until 



310 SERMON XXVI. 

it is for ever too late. These foolish virgins did not see their 
danger until it was midnight, and the bridegroom was com- 
ing forth. It was then too late to buy oil, and even if they 
had the hope of getting it, they were too late to go into the 
bridegroom's house. So, many professors of religion de- 
ceive themselves in their religious hopes and character until 
the very last hour of life. Then when death stares them 
in the face, they begin to be alarmed. Their prayer then 
is, " Give us of your oil." Sometimes, indeed, they become 
so careless and hardened, that they keep their confidence 
even until they get to the gate of heaven. Look at these 
foolish virgins. When they see the bridegroom coming, 
they are a little alarmed ; but in an hour they are confident 
again. Having gone to try and get oil, they go up with 
boldness to the bridegroom's door. And what are they 
doing there ? Are they rending the air with their wailings, 
and lamentations for their sins, and carelessness, and folly ? 
Are they weeping in sorrow over their want of preparation 
to go in unto the feast ? No, they say nothing about this. 
They are asking to be received. They expect to be received. 
They say, "Lord, Lord, open to us." 

My friends, just as these virgins needed oil for their 
lamps, just so will you need an abundant supply of the 
grace of God, in death and judgment. You may be getting 
along very smoothly and quietly in your religion now. You 
may have enough to answer your purposes in time of health 
and pleasure. But the Bible says, "woe unto them that 
are at ease in Zion." Before very long, a day of trouble 
will come upon you. Then you will see your need of the oil 
of God's grace. Before long, the day of death will come. 
When that is at a distance, you can think of it without 
fear. But you will find then, what a solemn and fearful 



THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. 311 

thing it is to die. No mortal tongue can tell now what 
you will think of death when you find yourself in its grasp. 
No man knows what it is to die, but he who is dying. 0, 
tell me how you will meet that terrible hour ! How will 
you feel when you come to meet God ? You, a guilty con- 
demned sinner against God — with what feelings will you go 
to meet him in that unknown eternity? 0, remember that 
you will need something there more than a mere hope that 
you may be saved. Nothing short of a true faith in Jesus 
Christ, will meet your wants there. • Nothing short of a holy 
life and a firm trust in the promises of God. 0, what a time 
will that be to find out that you had all along been deceiv- 
ing yourselves ! — to find that the lamps which seemed to 
be burning brightly, are growing dim — that your oil is all 
gone — and that you are left in darkness and despair. 

4. When these lamps went out, the virgins had no time 
to go and light them again. The shops which kept the oil 
were probably near, and they went off to buy. But while 
they were gone, the bridegroom came, and they that were 
ready, went in with him to the feast. The five wise virgins, 
and others who had been invited, went with him into the 
house, " and the door was shut." 

In many cases a little time is worth all the world to a 
man. What would not these virgins have given for the 
bridegroom to have waited one hour for them ! I knew a 
rich man once to offer the physician his whole estate, if he 
would keep him alive one day longer, that he might repent 
and prepare to meet God. He might have offered him the 
whole world, and it would have done no good. Two men 
were once sleeping in the same bed. At midnight they 
were roused by the cry of fire in the very house where they 
slept. One of them sprang forward and made his escape. 



812 SERMON XXVI. 

The other was close behind him. But just as he "was about 
to step out of the outer door, a part of the house fell, and 
buried him in the flames. A father once saw his child strug- 
gling in the water. He hastened to his relief, but he was 
a moment too late. Just as he stretched out his hand to 
grasp him, his son sank to rise no more. It is very often 
so in the salvation of the soul. My friends, you are now 
in reach of every blessing that heaven can give you. Here 
are grace, and mercy, and salvation, and glory, all set be- 
fore you. You are invited and begged to receive them. 
You may have them in the easiest way — on the freest 
terms. But let a few years pass away — let your hearts 
become hardened by sin. Go on neglecting God as you 
now do, and it may then be for ever too late. All the 
prayers, and tears, and entreaties, that your wretched con- 
dition can then wring from you, may never be able to place 
you in a state of salvation. You will soon be laid upon your 
death bed. If you have lived without prayer — without 
watchfulness — without God, you have no promise that he 
will give you his blessing there. You may weep for it — 
and beg for it; but he may shut up his heart against you. 
I do not say that you cannot be saved then ; but it is 
dreadfully dangerous to hazzard your soul on such a hope. 
A prayer offered up for the first time on a death bed is a 
fearful thing. It reminds me of the shrieks of a man who 
is waked up suddenly at midnight, and finds himself shut in 
on all sides by a raging fire. It reminds me of the strug- 
gles of a drowning man, who in terror grasps a straw, and 
hopes to save himself by it. It reminds me of a man who 
has been wrecked at sea, and clings to a broken plank look- 
ing out for some ship that may chance to pass along, or 
trying to paddle his way to shore. The Bible gives us the 



THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. 313 

history of what occurred in the course of four thousand 
years. It tells us of a great many conversions. But it tells 
us of but one sinner converted and saved in a dying hour. 
That was the thief on the cross. And think when that was. 
It was the most wonderful hour the world ever saw. The 
sun was darkened — the rocks were torn in sunder — the 
graves opened — the dead came out of them — the Lord of 
glory was crucified. In such an hour as this, he pardoned 
and saved a dying sinner. But God has no where pro- 
mised you, that he will save you in the same way. If you 
hope to be saved, you must make the best use of your time 
and opportunities, now. You must watch, and pray, and 
strive, now. You may now look upon religion as a thing 
of no great importance, but when you come to stand before 
God in judgment, you will find it to be the only thing you 
need. In comparison with it, the world and all that it has 
of riches, and pleasures, and honours, will be but a passing 
shadow. 

A good old servant, while he was asleep one night on his 
bed of straw, dreamed that he had passed away from earth 
up to heaven. He stood there in the great company of 
angels that were around the throne of God. He asked them 
what was the most precious gift of God ? They all answered 
with one voice, the loudest and sweetest he ever heard, 
" the salvation of Jesus Christ." He left that happy com- 
pany in heaven, and on wings swifter than an eagle's, he 
went down into the world of darkness and despair. He 
heard the groans and lamentations of the lost in hell; he 
saw their scalding tears, and listened to their hopeless cries. 
He asked them, "what is the most precious gift of God V 
with a voice which trembled upon his ear, which made his 
very heart sink in him, and terri^d him from their pre- 

27 



314 SERMON XXVI. 

sence, they all answered, "the salvation of Jesus Christ." 
He left that horrid world and flew away swifter than tho 
wind back to earth. He stood there in a crowd of the men 
of the world. Some were professing Christians and some 
were not. He asked them, " what is the most precious gift 
of God?" Some answered, "money," some, "pleasures," 
some, "honours," some, "learning," some, " health," some, 
"long life," some, "sin," and here and there a voice was 
heard saying, "the salvation of Jesus Christ." His dream 
went on, and he thought that a hundred years passed away. 
Then they all stood up around the throne of the eternal 
Judge. They stood there in breathless silence. Their faces 
as solemn as eternity. The proud, the wicked, the worldly, 
the careless professor, the pleasure-loving, the money-loving, 
were all there. 

Again, the question was asked, " what is the most pre- 
coius gift of God ?" Millions upon millions of voices were 
heard from one corner of the heavens to the other, crying, 
" the salvation of Jesus Christ ! but we've lost it for ever." 

It will not be long, my friends, and this dream will be 
turned to reality before your own eyes. These scenes will 
soon be before your eyes. You shall see them ; you shall 
take part in them. What part will you then take ? When 
the bridegroom comes will you be found like the wise vir- 
gins, watching with your lamps burning ? Will you sit 
down with our fathers, Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, at 
the marriage supper ? Or will you sleep on in carelessness, 
and then knock at the door of heaven when it is for ever 
too late ? You cannot, indeed, look into the eternal world. 
But you can look into your own hearts and lives. You can tell 
whether they are burning and shining with the love of God. 
You can teli whether you are watching for the coming of 



THE CAKELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. 315 

your Lord. 0, that God may pour into your hearts the oil 
of his Holy Spirit, and make you, in all your Christian life, 
a burning and a shining light ! 0, that he may ever keep 
alive in your hearts this tremendous question, " shall I live 
for ever in heaven or in hell ?" 

A young man made profession of religion, and set out in 
the Christian life. He was loved by all who knew him. For 
a time he seemed to take a great interest in religion. Re- 
gularly was he at church, and the prayer meeting and the 
Sunday school. But at last he began to stand on the streets 
of Sunday mornings, and visit his friends on Sunday 
evenings. He staid away from church and neglected other 
duties for trifling causes. In a word, he seemed to be 
going back to the world; yet he still professed to be a 
Christian. Sometimes he would come to the communion. 
He did not seem to enjoy religion as he did at first. Instead 
of sitting among the people of God in church, he would sit 
by himself near the door. He seldom ever talked of reli- 
gion as he once did. In a word, he had become what we call 
a careless and worldly-minded professor of religion. One 
evening he went to a party of gay and thoughtless young 
people. While the company seemed to be full of joy, his 
eye fell on a book that was lying on a table. He opened 
it. It was a hymn book. He read these lines : — 

"And must this body die ? 
This mortal frame decay ? 
And must these active limbs of mine 
Lie mouldering in the clay V 

In a moment he laid down the book and thought no more of 
these lines. That evening, at a late hour, he went to his 
chamber. He laid down to rest in the same bed with his 



316 SERMON XXVI. 

brother. After a while lie turned and said, " brother, I 
feel quite sick." The next morning he was much worse. 
A physician was called in, but he could not understand his 
case. At last it was found out, by some means, that he 
had, by mistake, taken something having deadly poison in 
it, while feeling for a glass of water in the dark. Every 
one saw that the hand of death was upon him. For three 
hours he was convulsed with agony. But his great agony 
was the agony of his mind. The minister of the gospel 
was called in. He told him of a merciful Saviour. His 
father knelt by his bed side, and wept and prayed over him. 
His mother wrung her hands in sorrow, and cried, " 0, my 
son, my son," and prayed until she swooned and sunk upon 
the floor. As he himself tossed from side to side, he cried 
out, " 0, Lord, have mercy upon me — 0, my God, have 
mercy upon me — mercy — mercy — mercy." Then reaching 
out his hands toward his father, he cried, " I am lost — I 
am lost ! am I not, father ?" Soon his breath grew shorter 
— his voice weaker, until, at last, he tried to lift his hands, 
as if he wished to cry for mercy once more, he sank back 
upon his pillow and died. 

" More than fifteen years," says his brother, "have now 
passed away since I heard those cries of dying agony. But 
they ring in my ears now as if it were but an hour ago. 
That look of fierce despair is now before my eye. That 
heart-rending cry, ' I am lost ! am I not, father ?' now 
echoes in my ears. How can I forget them ? They came 
from the death bed of one whom L loved — from the death 
bed of one who had been a lukewarm and careless pro- 
fessor of religion." Take warning all ye careless professors, 
and watch and pray lest ye enter into temptation — " lesjt 
the Master, coming suddenly, find you sleeping." 



THE CARELESS CHRISTIAN WARNED. 317 

L. M. 

That awful hour will soon appear ; 

Swift on the wing of time it flies ; 
When all that pains or pleases here 

Will vanish from my closing eyes. 

Death calls my friends, my neighbours hence, 

None can resist the fatal dart : 
Continual warnings strike my sense ; 

And shall they fail to reach my heart ? 

Think, 0, my soul ! how' much depends 

On the short period of to-day ; 
Shall time, which heaven in mercy lends, 
Be negligently thrown away ? 

Lord of my life, inspire my heart 
With heavenly ardour, grace divine ; 

Nor let thy presence e'er depart ; 
For strength, and life, and death, are thine. 

Questions. — 1. What is the kingdom of heaven said to be like ? 
1. Are true Christians and mere professors alike in many things ? 
3. Who are these wise virgins like ? 4. Who are the foolish ones 
like ? 5. What were the foolish careless about ? 6. What are many 
professors of religion careless about? 7, What happened to the 
foolish virgins ? 8. When did their lamps go out ? 9. How will it 
be with careless Christians at last ? 10. Was there time then for 
the virgins to buy oil for their lamps ? 11. Will there be time for 
the sinner to repent at the bar of God ? 12. Ought every Christian 
to watch and pray now lest he fail at last ? 



27* 



SERMON XXYIL 

GOD'S EYE ALWAYS ON US. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 
Thou God seest me. — Gen. xri. 13. . 

Some people are so foolish as to say in their hearts, 
"there is no God." But all wise and good people helieve 
that there is such a Being ; and all true Christians try to 
act just as if he was standing by and looking at them. A 
great many years ago there lived a good old man whose 
name was Abraham. His wife was named Sarah ; and they 
owned a servant whose name was Hagar. By some means 
or other Hagar offended her mistress. So her mistress 
treated her harshly, and Hagar ran off from the dwelling 
of Abraham and hid herself in the wilderness. While she 
was there all alone, where the eye of no man could see her, 
God sent an angel to reprove her for her sin. He com- 
manded her to return to her mistress and humble herself 
before her. She had, no doubt, thought herself perfectly 
safe where she was ; and had probably said to herself she 
would never again be under the authority of Sarah. But 
she could not hide from the eye of God. This she was well 
convinced of; for when the angel spake to her she answered, 
"thou Gfod seest me." God then told her what was to be 
(318) 



sod's eye always on us. 319 

the character and life of her child, at that time unborn. 
He told her that he "would be a wild man; that his hand 
would be against every man, and every man's hand against 
him." Hagar returned to her mistress and gave birth to 
her child. He grew up to be a man, and went away and 
married, and became the father of twelve sons. These sons 
settled a country called Arabia. Their descendants still 
live there. And to this very day they are a wandering, savage 
people. They live by cheating, stealing and plundering. 
They murder many of those who attempt to pass through 
their country. You may know, then, that they are very 
wicked people. They are at war with all the world. They 
spread over an immense country, and no army has ever yet 
been able to conquer them. Most truly might Hagar say, 
"thou God seest me," if he was able to tell, even before 
her child was born, that such would be his character and 
the character of his children. 

There are not many servants like Hagar. Most of us 
think that if we can hide from the eyes of our fellow- 
creatures, all is well with us. Then we think we may do 
what we please and no one can punish us for it. But hear 
what the Bible says about it : " God will bring every work 
into judgment with every secret thing." " His eyes are in 
every place beholding both the evil and the good." "His 
eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his 
goings." " Hell is naked before him, destruction hath no 
covering — neither is there any creature that is not manifest 
in his sight. All things are naked and open unto the eyes of 
him with whom we have to do." " Even the darkness hideth 
not from him. The night shineth as the day. The darkness 
and the light are both alike to him." Therefore, wherever 
you are, or whatever you are thinking, or saying, or doing, 



320 SEEMON XXVII. 

you should not forget the language of Hagar, " thou God 
seest me." For if God could see her while hid in the deep 
and dark wilderness, he can see you even in the darkness 
of midnight. I do not believe that any man really thinks 
"there is no God." Some may wish there was none. And 
some may try to believe there is none. But these are great- 
sinners. And the Bible says they are fools. But I can 
easily see how men can forget that God's eye is always 
upon them. I can easily see how some men can say in their 
hearts — how is it possible for God to be always looking 
at me? 

You think that because you do not see God, he does not 
always see you. You do not know much about him. You 
cannot understand how he is always present with you. But 
there are many things which you cannot see ; which you 
know very little about, that are always present with you. 
You remember that bright summer day when you first went 
into the harvest field. You stood on its border with your 
scythes well whetted — your rakes and reap-hooks grasped 
in your hand, ready with merry hearts to gather the grain 
into the barn. As you "looked across the broad field of 
yellow, rich grain, you saw it bending and rising like the 
waves of the ocean. You could see no mighty hand sweep- 
ing over it — you could not see the power that moved it. Yet 
you knew in a moment what it was that made the wheat 
bend before you. You felt it fanning your own face, cool- 
ing and refreshing your body for the work. You knew it 
to be the wind. Yet you did not see it. But you saw what 
it did. You saw it drive the clouds across the heavens — 
you heard it moaning in the trees. Though you cannot 
see the wind, no man can make you believe that it is not 
always about you. And so it is with many other things ; 



god's eye always on us. 321 

you cannot see your own breath. And yet no man could 
make you believe that you could live an hour without it. 
You cannot see the heat, -or the cold, and yet no man could 
make you believe that there is no such thing. 

Why, then, should any of you think that because you 
cannot see God, and know so little about him, therefore, he 
does not always see you ? " God is a spirit." " No man hath 
seen God at any time." But this is not wonderful. For if 
you cannot see the wind, nor the cold, nor heat ; all which 
you can feel sensibly on your body, it is not at all strange 
that you cannot see a spirit, so pure and delicate, that it is 
impossible to feel it. I know there are some things about 
God which you cannot understand. You cannot understand 
how he was never born, and will never die. You cannot 
understand how he knows what you are now thinking about, 
and what is going on in the farthest corner of the world ; 
and what will take place millions of years yet to come. And 
these things you will never understand until you come 
before his great white throne, and sit down with him to rest 
in the bright palace of the New Jerusalem. So the Bible 
tells us " the wind bloweth where it listeth and thou hearest 
the sound thereof: but cannot tell whence it cometh and 
whither it goeth." You cannot make yourself believe that 
there is no God, any more than you can make yourself be- 
lieve there is no wind. For you can see all round you 
what he does, just as you see what the wind does. You see 
the world that he has made ; you see the sun he has put 
in the heavens to shine upon us ; and the stars that twinkle 
to guide you in your way at night. You see how he makes 
the corn grow and ripen ; how he makes you strong and 
active to work it. You see how he keeps men alive, and just 
when he pleases, brings them down to death. Surely if 




322 SERMON XXVII. 

lie does all this lie must watch over all things. And if he 
watches over the corn, and the wheat, to make them grow ; 
if he watches over all the trees of the forest and the lilies 
of the field to see that they do their work and blossom and 
bring forth fruit, can you think that he does not see you ? 
Can you think that he does not watch your heart, your 
thoughts, your hands and all your actions ? Remember that 
even the hairs of your head are all numbered by him — - 
much more, all the sins of your life. Remember that 
Hagar in the wilderness, had to cry out, even in her hiding 
place, "thou God seest me." / 

Again : you sometimes think that God does not see you 
because he does not at once punish your sins. One of the 
old prophets tells us that God is very gracious and merciful 
— slow to anger, that he does not desire the death of a sin- 
ner, but rather that he would turn unto him and live. God, 
therefore, bears with your sins. He gives you time and 
opportunity to repent and seek salvation through his Son 
Jesus Christ. But another prophet tells us that God " has 
set our iniquities before him, and our secret sins in the 
light of his countenance." Though he may not immediately 
punish your sins, he does not forget them. He never will 
forget them. He has placed them all before him and will 
keep them there until the great day of judgment. Only 
think of this. The sins that you committed years ago, sins 
that you have long since forgotten; sins that have never 
given you one moment's trouble ; sins that no man on earth 
ever knew you to be guilty of; sins that you would solemnly 
deny, should any one here charge you with them now ; sins 
that you would not tell the best friend you have ; sins that 
would make you hide your face in shame if they were now 
told on you ; all these and countless thousands of other sins 






god's eye always on us. 323 

against your fellow-servants ; against your children ; against 
your master and mistress; against God; all are placed 
before God's eyes. He sees them every day, every hour, 
every moment. He never loses sight of them. He may 
not punish you for them to-day, or to-morrow. But if you 
do not repent and go to him, and beg forgiveness in the 
name of Jesus Christ, he will punish you hereafter either in 
this world or in the next. 

The Bible tells us of a good old man who had two sons. 
Their names were Jacob and Esau. ' Jacob was an amiable 
young man, and had many good qualities. His mother 
loved him ; and we are told that God also loved him. But 
while he was yet but a youth he sinned against God. He 
deceived his father who was very old and blind — told a 
falsehood, and cheated his brother Esau out of his title to 
his father's estate. The Lord did not at once bring him 
into judgment for that sin. But he never forgot it. Jacob, 
fearing that Esau would kill him, left his father's house, 
and wandered alone into a distant country. There he 
entered into business ; and, no doubt, tried to forget the 
sin he had committed. For seven years he went on quietly 
and prosperously. He had fallen in love with a beautiful 
woman. She was one of the daughters of the man for 
whom he was labouring. Her father had promised him, 
tha£ if he would take care of his flocks for seven years, 
he would give her to him as his wife. He had other 
daughters. But Jacob loved none of them as he did Rachel. 
It seemed to him that all his happiness was bound up in 
her ; and he laboured on cheerfully for seven years to ob- 
tain her. The seven years ended, he reminded her father 
of his promise. But what will you think when I tell you 
that Jacob is himself deceived now, as greatly as he had 



324 seemon xxvn. 

deceived his father, seven years before. When he was 
about to be married the old man imposed upon him. In- 
stead of giving him Rachel, he disguised or dressed up one 
of his other daughters whom Jacob did not love, and never 
thought of marrying, and married her to him. How could 
Jacob help looking back to the day when he had deceived his 
good old father, and saying to himself, as Hagar did in the 
wilderness, " thou God seest me." But Jacob went on with 
his business. He worked seven years more and was married 
to Rachel. His flocks multiplied around him. His brother 
Esau became friendly to him. His children grew up and 
prospered. Surely, he thought, God has lost sight of my 
sin. But God still sees it. After many years had passed 
away, one of his daughters is shamefully treated, and dis- 
graced. Two of his sons commit murder. In all this God 
teaches him that he was present when he sinned against 
him in his father's chamber. Years roll on again. But 
God does not forget his sin. At length his wife dies, and 
Jacob is left to mourn over her. He has twelve sons, and 
one of them whose name was Joseph, he loves with all the 
tenderness of his heart. One day while Joseph was wander- 
ing in the field where his brothers were feeding their flocks, 
they caught him and sold him to some merchants that were 
going down to Egypt. They then made their father be- 
lieve that some wild beast had devoured him. When Jacob 
heard this sad news about his son, he was driven almost to 
madness. He would not be comforted. But said he would 
go down to the grave mourning for him. 

Here again Jacob could look back to the days of his boy- 
hood — and remember how he had deceived his father, and 
cheated his brother. How could he help saying in his heart, 
"thou God seest me?" Years roll on again — and Jacob 



. 



god's eye always on us. 325 



goes down into Egypt. There he enjoys the unspeakable 
pleasure of meeting with his beloved son Joseph. But, 0, 
how is this happiness now* disturbed, when he finds that ten 
of his other sons had united to destroy their brother Joseph, 
and to break his own heart with sorrow ! Do not forget 
then, that God sees every sin you commit. He may not 
cut you down at once in them ; but he may follow you with 
punishment all your life through, as he did Jacob — and 
then after death, bring you unto judgment. 

Have you never seen any thing like this yourselves ? I 
once knew a young man who thought he would take his 
pleasure in the world. He drank to drunkenness, and 
gambled away his father's money. He would not listen to 
his father's advice, nor regard his mother's tears. He grew 
up to be a man — made money, and seemed for some years 
to prosper in the world. He married. After a while his 
two sons began to be young men ; and they treated him just 
as he treated his parents. They spent his money just as he 
spent his father's. They lived drunkards — despised by all 
who knew them. They died poor and wretched, and were 
buried without a tear being shed over their graves. This is 
the way that God often teaches us that he sees all our sins. 
I could tell you a hundred other things of this kind to prove 
to you that the eye of God is always upon you — that he 
sees every sin you commit, and that he will one day punish 
you for them. 

And how do you know what terrible judgment God may 
soon send upon you for some sin he saw in you, when you 
Were young ? How do you know what sorrow and shame 
may be in store for you for some sin you committed but 
yesterday ? But suppose God does not punish your sins in 
this world. Suppose he lets you live in peace — and die 

28 



326 SERMON XXVII. 

with a good name — regretted by all your fellow-servants, 
and your master and mistress. Yet God will still teach you 
that he sees your sins. You cannot escape that great trial 
before his dreadful bar. Your sins have already gone up 
there. You do not think of them now ; or if you do you 
cannot count them. Y r ou think many of them are buried 
and forgotten. But, on that day, they will come up like 
ghosts before you. They will haunt you through eternity. 
You cannot escape from them. You will never more for- 
get them. You may beg the mountains to cover you — you 
may try to hide yourself in the bosom of the great deep — 
you may plunge yourself into the deepest and darkest 
hiding place of hell, and still your sins will coil like an 
eternal serpent round your soul, and stare you in the face 
with all the ghastliness of the second death. 0, do not for- 
get that no time — no night — no cover — no wilderness — no 
deep laid schemes — no grave — nor any thing else can ever 
hide you from God's eye — and God's wrath. I tell you 
here, in the sight of heaven, that God will bring all your 
sins into judgment. The mountains that rise up in majesty 
towards the skies will soon be swept away. The broad 
jivers that roll so proudly through the valleys, shall soon 
be dried up. The bright sun that sends out his light to all 
the world, shall soon be blotted out. The blue sky that 
spans so high and wide over our heads, shall soon be rolled 
up, and the high pillars of heaven shall be torn down. This 
great world and all that is therein, shall soon pass away. 
But your sinful thoughts, and words, and actions, shall 
never pass away. They can never perish. They will form 
a world of themselves — a world of guilt, of wretchedness, 
of shame, of hatred, of wrath, and of unending death. 
There may be mountains there ; but they will be mountains 






god's eye always on us. 327 

of sin. There may be valleys there ; but they will be valleys 
of darkness and of the shadow of death. There may be a 
sun there ; but it will be the blazing and unquenching fire 
of God's wrath. There may be employment there ; but it 
will be the employment of weeping and wailing, lamentation 
and mourning, to all eternity. 0, " cease to do evil, and 
learn to do well." Go, with bleeding hearts to that Saviour 
who is ready to blot out, as a thick cloud, all your trans- 
gressions. Beg his forgiveness for all your sins. Seek the 
renewing influences of his Holy Spirit. Obey his com- 
mandments. Do his will. Live to his honour. Follow his 
example. Die in his service. Do this, and God's eye shall 
ever be upon you for good. Then when he shall call you 
away from the world, his eye will still watch over you as 
you pass through the darkness of the grave. And on that 
day when we shall all meet together before his great throne 
he will still remember you. He will then number you 
among the saints who are to go into his kingdom. He will 
cause you to shine as the sun in the firmament of heaven, 
and be as stars for ever and ever. All this will he do unto 
you, for the sake of his son Jesus Christ, who became the 
servant of servants for your sake, and died the death of 
the vilest malefactor, that you might never die. 

A minister of the gospel once said to an intelligent little 
boy, "my son, tell me where God is, and I will give you 
an orange." The little boy replied, "if you will tell me 
where he is not, I will give you two oranges." 

A Sunday school teacher was once talking to the scholars 
of his school about God. Now and then he asked them 
questions. Among other things he asked them, "Where 
is God?" One of the boys answered, "He is in heaven." 
But this did not satisfy the teacher; again he asked," where 



328 SEEMON XXVII. 

is God?" Another boy answered, " every where." Still 
he was not satisfied. Once more he asked, " where is 
God?" A third little boy spoke out and said, "God is 
here." Then the teacher was satisfied and said, "Yes, God 
is in heaven — God is every where — God is here." 

L. M. 

Among the deepest shades of night 
Can there be one who sees my way? 

Yes, God is as a shining light, 
That turns the darkness into day. 

When every eye around me sleeps, 

May I not sin without control ? 
No ; for a constant watch he keeps, 

On every thought of every soul. 

If I could find some cave unknown, 
Where human feet had never trod, 

Yet there I could not be alone, 
On every side there would be God. 

He smiles in heaven, he frowns in hell, 
He fills the earth, the air, the sea, 

I must within his presence dwell, 
I cannot from his anger flee. 

Yet I may flee ; he shows me where : 

To Jesus Christ he bids me fly ; 
And while I seek my pardon there, 

There's only mercy in his eye. 

Questions. — 1. Who was it that said, Thou God seest me ? 2. Who 
was Hagar ? 3. Where was she when she said this ? 4. Can you ever 
hide from God's eye? 5. Where does God say his eyes are? 6. Is 
there any thing else besides God you cannot see ? 7. Do you think 
that because you cannot see God, that is any reason why any one 
should think there is no God? 8. Why do you think there is a God ? 



god's eye always on us. 329 

9. Do you think that because God does not at once punish your sins, 
that is any reason for saying there is no God ? 10. Will God at last 
punish all who go on in sin ? 11. Does he ever punish us for sin in 
this world ? 12. Can you tell me how he punished Jacob ? 13. Do 
you know of any whom God has punished here for sin ? 14. Where 
does God write down all our sins ? 15. What will he at last do with 
sinners ? 



3*« 



SERMON XXYIII. 

ALL OF US MUST GIVE ACCOUNT TO GOD. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Every one of us shall give account of himself to God. — Romans 
xiv. 12. 

The world is full of the works of God. Every thing was 
made by him and for him. And out of the countless mil- 
lions of his works, in the sky, in the sea, and on the land, 
not one can be found which has not its task to do. From 
the bright sun which he has hung out like a great fire in 
the heavens, down to the litiio <mt that builds its house in 
the dust ; every thing moves and works in its proper place. 
God did not make any thing to be useless. He did not 
make any thing without expecting it to do some work. The 
land which the ploughman turns so beautifully in the fur- 
row is expected to bring forth its grain. The timbers of 
which his plough is made are expected to answer their pur- 
pose. The horses that move so gently onward are expected 
to do their part faithfully and humbly. And what is 
more, every one of these is, in some way, held to account. 
Now if God has made the earth to bring forth the grain, 
and made the grain to feed the horses, and made the horses 
to work for man, what has he made man for ? Has he 

(330) 



ALL OF US MUST GIVE ACCOT NT TO GOD. 331 

made him to run free and wild ? to do no work ? to answer 
no end ? to give in no account ? 0, no. He made each 
one of us for higher purposes than any of his other works 
in this world. He made us to serve him, and to glorify 
him. He .made us with higher and nobler powers of mind 
and of body than any other beings here below. He made 
us in his own likeness. He gave us immortal souls ? and 
linked us in kindred with angels and with himself. It is his 
work then that we have to do. We should never forget 
that he watches us in all our work and in all our ways — 
that he is witness to all our thoughts, our words and acts, 
and that the day is not far off when we must all give a strict 
account of ourselves to him. 

Some people who love to live in sin, may not wish to 
think of this. Others may not like to believe it. The 
thought that they must give account to God for all they do, 
would trouble their minds and sour their pleasures. They, 
therefore, try not to trouble themselves about it. But God 
who cannot lie, says we shall give account to him. And 
why should any one think it strange that we shall have to 
give in this account? Is there any one here who does not 
take an account of the things that are under his care ? 
One of the ploughmen is seen standing by his plough, ex- 
amining it. He works it from side to side, then throws it 
on the ground and takes his horses from it. He is dis- 
satisfied with it. It will not work to suit him. He has 
called it to an account, and condemned it. The miller has 
come into the field where the wheat is about to be threshed, 
to bargain for the crop. But look at him, what is he doing ? 
He has taken a few of the heads, and rubs the grain out 
with his hands, to see whether it is full and sound. Thus he 
tries it, and calls it to an account before he will admit it 



dfek 



832 SERMON XXVIII. 

into his mill. A pair of horses were not long since taken 
in hand to he hroken for the carriage. When they were 
supposed to he ready, the driver tried them to the carriage. 
He was displeased with them; and complained of them. 
He called them to an account. They were, therefore, taken 
from the carriage and put to harder work. I passed hy a gar- 
den not long ago, which seemed to he neglected and grown up 
in weeds. I inquired about it, and was told that the owner 
had tried it several years, and found the situation too damp 
and low to bring any thing valuable — that he had done all 
he could for it, and still it would not answer. He called it 
to an account and condemned it. He, therefore, left it to 
be trodden down by the cattle. I once saw a man in prison 
loaded with chains. He was weeping in bitterness. I 
inquired of the keeper of the jail about him ; and learned 
that he had just been condemned to die for a crime against 
the law. He had been called to an account and sentence 
had been passed against him. And so it is with every thing. 
Every servant takes account of the tools with which he 
works, and of the horses he drives. Every master takes 
account of the servants under his command'. Every teacher 
takes account of the scholars he teaches. Every father 
takes account of the children of his bosom. And God takes 
account of all of us. 

Listen, now, and see if what the Bible says does not agree 
with all this. It tells us that there was a gardener who 
had a fig tree planted in his garden. For three years he 
came seeking fruit on that fig tree, and found none. He 
looked at it well. He was dissatisfied with it ; and because 
it did not produce fruit he commanded the dresser of his 
garden to cut it down and burn it in the fire. What was 
all this but calling it to an account ? It tells us of a cer- 



ALL OF US MUST GIVE ACCOUNT TO GOD. 333 

tain rich man who had a steward, or an agent who managed 
his affairs. By some means the rich man heard that the 
steward had acted dishonestly. He, therefore, told him to 
give an account of his stewardship, and resolved to turn him 
out of his office. It tells us again of a certain nobleman 
who was about to go into a far country. Before he left, he 
called all his servants, and gave to each one his proper 
work, or his talents, and told them to occupy, or to do their 
duty, until his return. After a long time the master of 
these servants returned, and called up all these servants, 
and took an account of what they had done. Now these 
are all mere examples to teach us how God will take 
account of every one of us. God tells us positively, that he 
has " appointed a day in the which he will judge the world 
in righteousness, by that man whom he hath ordained," 
even Jesus Christ. "We must all stand before the judg- 
ment seat of Christ," " every one of us shall give account 
of himself to God." " The son of man shall come in his 
glory and all his holy angels with him. Then shall he sit 
upon the throne of his glory and before him shall be 
gathered all nations." " The book shall be opened, and the 
dead shall be judged out of those things that are written 
in the books." " For every idle word that men shall speak 
they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." 
None of us can escape the strict trial of that dreadful day. 
Every one of us must give account. The ignorant and the 
learned, the poor and the rich, the low and the high, all of us 
must go up to be tried before that great bar. The beggar 
and the king, the servant and the master, the child and the 
parent, must all stand there on an equal footing to give in 
their account. None will be so great, none so mean as to 
escape that day. There will be no mountains to cover, no 




334 SERMON XXVIII. 

darkness to hide any of us. Each one must go up for 
himself. He can employ no one to stand in his plac 
Every one will have more than he can do to answer for hi 
self. The proud and the humble, the honest and the di 
honest, the pure and the impure, the saint and the sinner, 
must all stand there together in the blazing light of eter- 
nity. 0, what a day ! and what a scene ! what breathless 
silence ! what trembling, fearful hearts will be there, as the 
great Judge of heaven and earth shall come to judge every 
sinful thought, and word, and act of your lives ! 

But I think I hear some of you saying, " certainly we 
will have no account to give. We cannot read, we are 
very ignorant, we seldom ever have a chance to hear the 
Bible. We are in so low and humble a state in life, that 
God cannot expect any thing from us. "But 0, do not let 
Satan deceive you with such a thought as this. I told you 
just now of a certain nobleman who was about to go into 
a far country, and called his servants and delivered unto 
them his goods, and told them to go and trade with them 
until his return. To some he gave more, to some less; to 
some he gave one talent, to others he gave ten. Those to 
whom he gave ten talents he expected to improve them and 
make ten talents more ; and those to whom he gave one, 
he expected to make one talent more. God has not, indeed, 
given to you ten talents. But he has not left you entirely 
without talents. To some of you he has given one, to some 
two, and to some five talents. Whatever it may be, he ex- 
pects you to be diligent and faithful in the improvement 
of it. He has appointed you to your proper place of use- 
fulness. He has taught you what is right and what is 
wrong. He has told you how to love and obey him. That 
is one talent. You know what is pleasing or displeasing to 



ALL OF US MUST GIVE ACCOUNT TO GOD. 335 

Jesus, your divine friend and Saviour. You know that it 
was for your sins that he suffered, and bled, and died. 
That is another talent. You know that he commands you 
to follow his example, to be honest, truthful, prayerful, 
faithful, and zealous in all good. That is another talent. 
You cannot read ; but you know where you can always hear 
the Bible read. You know some one who is always ready 
to give you religious instruction. You know how sinful it 
is to set a bad example. That is another talent. You know 
how easily you can teach the younger servants around you to 
swear, and lie, and steal, and get angry, and fight, and be 
insolent, and to do every other bad thing. All these things 
you know to be fearfully sinful before God. You know, too, 
that unless you truly repent and turn to the blessed Saviour 
for forgiveness and mercy, and love and serve him with pure 
hearts and lives you can never give in your account before 
God with peace. That is another talent. All this you 
know as well as I do. You know it as well as the greatest 
and wisest man in the world does. Yes, my dear friends, 
may we not hope that some of you know these things better 
than some of the wise men of this world ? Humble and 
ignorant as you think yourselves, on this point, you may be 
happier and more learned than some of them. It is not 
worldly knowledge that makes a man wise in this sense. It 
is not worldly riches that makes a man happy. Dives had 
riches, and probably worldly knowledge, too, but he lifted 
up his eyes in hell, being in torment, while the poor, de- 
spised Lazarus was resting in peace and glory in Abraham's 
bosom. Nothing but true religion — the love of God shed 
abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, can ever make 
any man truly wise and truly happy. On the day when 
we must all stand before the judgment throne of God to 



336 SERMON XXVIII. 

give in our account, some of the richest and most learned 
men that have ever lived, would gladly give all their learn- 
ing and riches, if they could, to change places with some 
poor and humble servant who walked with God here, anc 
lived by faith in Jesus Christ. 

But I think I hear some of you ask, "why will God 
take this account of us?" I answer — God will condemn 
no man unjustly. He will convince all that he condemns, 
of the justice and righteousness of his judgments. He 
will, therefore, call you up to his judgment throne to ex- 
amine your whole life, and heart and character. He will 
judge you according to the deeds you have done whether 
they be good or bad. By these he will determine whether 
you shall be raised to the world of glory with him, or 
doomed to unending darkness in the world of despair. He 
will then separate the righteous from the wicked, as you 
have sometimes separated the chaff from the wheat. He 
will drive the wicked away in their wickedness, as you have 
seen chaff driven before the wind. He will gather the 
righteous into his kingdom, as you have gathered the wheat 
into the garner. But all the impenitent and ungodly, he 
will cast into outer darkness — they shall go away into ever- 
lasting punishment. Their portion shall be in the lake that 
burneth with fire and brimstone, where the worm dieth not, 
and the fire is not quenched." 

0, what a day of tremendous and eternal interests that 
will be ! Its decisions can never be changed. Upon it, 
every thing that is dear to us, in all time and eternity will 
hang. A boundless eternity will stretch on beyond it. 
Through every moment of that eternity you will feel the 
effects of that day's trial. Impenitent sinner, that trial will 
make the most solemn moment of your existence. It may 



ALL OF US MUST GIVE ACCOUNT TO GOD. . 337 

occupy but an hour. But it will be fresh in your memory, 
as if but yesterday, when myriads and myriads of ages shall 
have rolled away. None of us, my dear friends, can know 
how soon that day may come upon us. " The Son of man 
cometh at an hour when we think not." And the warning 
to us all, is to watch, lest he may come at evening, or at 
midnight, or at the cock crowing, and find us sleeping. 

Death stands before us every day in a thousand forms. 
The exposure of a single night — the danger of a single 
hour— the fever of a single sickness, may lay us down in 
death. Then, "after death the judgment." We have no 
agreement with the grave — no contract with death. Neither 
riches, nor fine houses, nor large fields, nor many friends, 
nor learned physicians, nor great talents, can drive back 
death. He comes riding on, with terrible speed, like some 
mighty giant, trampling all in the dust that fall in his way. 
How soon his footsteps may be heard, God only knows. 
One thing, we know, he is no respecter of persons. He 
sends forth his arrows by night and by day. He pays no 
more respect to the chamber of the great and the rich, than 
he does to the hovel of the poor and the ignorant. I have 
seen the marks of his horrible footsteps in the halls of the 
great mansion — as well as on the dirt floor of the servant's 
cabin. 

Now let me carry you forward a few days or years in 
your existence. Imagine yourself standing amidst the 
scenes of that last, solemn day of account. On the one 
hand, are the millions of the dead rising up to judgment ; 
on the other, is that bright and glorious Saviour coming in 
the clouds of heaven. Before him, is the "great white 
throne" of judgment. The countenance of every sinner is 
dark with horror. His awful doom is written on his very 

29 



S38 SERMON XXVIII. 

brow This is no picture of fancy. My dear friends, you 
must all, one day, witness this scene. It is far more cer- 
tain to you all, than to-morrow's sun rising. How will you 
meet it ? Are you ready to give in your account ? Let us 
look at this question. You stand up on that day before 
your great Lord and Master, and he will speak to you in 
the most solemn and searching inquiries. He will call for 
an "account of your stewardship." 

1. He will ask, " what have you done for the immortal 
soul I gave you?" It was the image of himself. It was 
the only part of you that was of any real value. It was 
like God in its nature ; * and was given to you to make you 
happy for ever. He commanded you to seek, first of all 
things, to save it — to work out its salvation "with fear and 
trembling." He told you that this work was not to be 
trifled with — that it was infinitely important ; and must not 
be put off. He told you, that, dreadful as it is, there is 
such a thing as the loss of the soul; yet that it could be 
saved through the blood of his Son Jesus Christ. All he 
required of you was, sincerely and honestly to make the 
effort. And I ask you, in view of this great day, what 
have you done ? You are going up to meet the Judge. What 
will you say when you stand before him ? What reason 
will you give why you are not prepared to go in and join 
with the angels in glorifying his name ? Will you be able 
to tell him that you have ever been really anxious about 
the salvation of your soul ? Can you tell him that you 
thought of him by day ? that you prayed to him by night ? 
that you tried to love and serve him ? that you tried to for- 
sake sin, and to live a good and holy life ? Ah I my friends, 
these will be searching questions. As they shall fall upon 






ALL OF US MUST GIVE ACCOUNT TO GOD. 339 

you from the lips of the Judge, you will wish for mountains 
to fall and hide you from his face. 

2. Again he will ask, " how did you treat the offer of 
salvation which I made so freely to you ?" How often have 
you been told that, " Grod commended his love to you, in 
that while you were yet sinners Christ died for you ?" You 
have heard about the shame and the sorrow of that death ; 
you have heard of the dark and bloody scene of Calvary ; 
you have been told all about that bleeding side ; and those 
pierced hands and feet ; and that horrid crown ; that agony 
and bloody sweat ; that cross and passion ; that precious 
death and burial. You know that all this was for you. 
You know that " God so loved the world that he gave his 
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him, might 
not perish but have everlasting life." 

0, what a rich salvation ! So precious ! so free ! so full ! 
It is bounded by no rivers — hemmed in by no oceans — con- 
fined to no climates. It reaches, to every spot where the 
foot of man has trod, or the light of the sun has dawned. 
How can you help loving such a Saviour ? 0, look at that 
scene. See his pangs in that dark hour of death. Look 
at that blood flowing drop by drop to the ground. Think 
of the worth of the soul for which he dies. What a value 
set upon it ! What a price paid for it ! Is there no guilt 
in rejecting, or neglecting such an offer of love and mercy ? 
You are going up to meet that Saviour. You will not see 
him on the cross dying for sinners. He will not meet you 
as a Saviour, but as the Judge eternal. Can you say that 
you have not, all your life long, despised his compassion ? 
That you have not shunned all his invitations of mercy ? 
That you have not looked with indifference on his cross ? 
That you have not crucified him afresh ? 0, turn to that 



340 sermon xxvni. 

Saviour now, I beseech you, with true repentance and lively 
faith. Beg for his forgiveness and his mercy. Let not the 
sun go down upon you again as a stranger to him. If you 
do, he may, on that day, meet you as a lion bereaved of her 
whelps, and tear you in pieces, when there will be none to 
deliver. 

3. He will ask you again, " How have you treated the 
warnings of the Holy Ghost, whom I have sent to convince 
you of sin ?" This Holy Ghost came to teach you your need 
of the Saviour — to show you your own guilt, and to lead 
you to the cross of Christ. How often, at midnight, have 
you been alarmed by him ? How often has he made you 
sad and sorrowful, when your daily toil was over ? How 
often has he invited you by the most gentle and winning 
influences, to come and find peace and mercy in the bosom 
of that blessed Saviour ? As you have seen the wheat beau- 
tifully bending before the summer breeze ; so has the spirit 
sometimes sweetly inclined you to God, and to heaven. As 
you have seen the clouds grow black in the western sky, 
and then sweep in terror over the earth, so has this spirit 
sometimes roused you from your sinful slumber, and made 
you ask, " what shall I do to be saved ?" As you have seen 
the sun go down in clouds, and a damp, dark night settle 
on the face of the earth ; so has this spirit sometimes over- 
spread your soul, and kept you in long spiritual gloom. But 
what was all this ? It was the work of that spirit sent by 
the once crucified, now exalted Saviour, to bring you back 
to himself, that he might forgive all your sins, and prepare 
you to give in your account with joy. You are going up to 
meet that Saviour, unprepared ; the spirit will no longer 
strive with you ; your day of grace will be ended. Your 
sun of hope will have gone down. What excuse will you 






ALL OP US MUST GIVE ACCOUNT TO GOD. 341 

offer for setting no value on such a soul ? for despising such 
a Saviour ? for resisting and driving from you the winning 
and heavenly influences of such a spirit ! 0, if you are lost 
then it is your own fault. "You have destroyed yourself." 
You knew your duty but did it not. What an account will 
all this be for you to give in at the bar of your great mas- 
ter and Lord ! 

My dear friends, remember that a the time is short." 
Your days are fast sinking into darkness. Your account is 
growing more and more fearful. An unchanging night will 
soon settle down on you. The night of death is followed by 
no rising sun — it is lighted by no stars to guide you. In 
it ho work can be done. As you die so you must remain. 
0, fall down a 4 - that blessed Saviour's feet. Beg his for 
giveness for all your sins and hardness of heart. Spend all 
your remaining breath in his service. Then shall the bless- 
ing of the Lord your God be upon you. You shall die in 
peace — you shall give in your account with joy. 

CM. 

Almighty God, thy piercing eye 
Strikes through the shades of night, 

And our most secret actions lie 
All open to thy sight. 

There's not a sin that we commit, 

Nor wicked word we say, 
But in thy dreadful book 'tis writ, 

Against the judgment day. 

And must the crimes that I have done 

Be read and published there ? 
Be all exposed before the sun, 

While men and and angels hear ? 

29* 



342 SERMON XXVIII. 

Lord, at thy feet ; ashamed I lie 

Upward I dare not look ; 
Pardon my sins before I die, 

And blot them from thy book. 

Remember all the dying pains 

That my Redeemer felt ; 
And let his blood wash out my stains, 

And answer for my guilt. 

Questions. — 1. What did God make man for ? 2. Is it right that 
we should all give account to God? 3. Do you take account of any 
thing ? 4. What does the Bible tell us about God taking account of 
us ? 5. Where will God take this account ? 6. Can any of us escape 
the day of judgment? 7. Has God left any man without some 
talents ! 8. Do you know enough to leave you without excuse ? 9. 
Why must all give account to God ? 10. Are you prepared to give 
your account ? 11. What three things must you account for ? 12, 
What will you say when Jesus shall call you up ? 



SERMON XXIX 

OUTWARD RELIGION NOT ENOUGH TO FIT A 
MAN FOR HEAVEN. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the 
kingdom of heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my Father which 
is in heaven. — Matt. vii. 21. 

There is a great world beyond the grave called the 
eternal world. We are all travellers to it — some of us 
going by one road, some by another. But we shall all meet 
there at the last day to come back here no more. The Bible 
tells us that in that world there are two places. One is a 
place where all is peace and happiness, where Jesus our 
Redeemer dwells. The other is a place where God never 
smiles, where sorrows never end, where eternal fires burn. 
You know which of these places is called heaven, and 
which is called hell. All that go into the eternal world go 
and live for ever in one or the other of these places. To 
one or the other of them you and I are this moment going. 
We know not how far we are from it. No man can tell us 
the distance. There are no sign posts and finger boards on 
the way to tell us how many days or hours it will take us 
to get there. We meet no traveller on the way who haa 

(343) 



344 SERMON XXIX. 

been there, and is coming back to tell us any thing about 
it. But one thing we know, that we are all going there 
very fast. While I read to you, some one is going through 
the eternal gates. You and I shall soon follow in his steps. 
It may be next week. It may be this night. Stop, then, a 
moment and let us talk about the place we are going to. 
But no — we cannot stop ; for while we talk we hasten on. 
Which of these places will be our abode in that world? 
This is a question of the most awful importance to each 
one of us. Come, go forward with me then to the end of 
our journey. Come, stand with me before God in that great 
trial. Let us see whether we are now prepared to meet that 
trial, to go into the kingdom of heaven. We will suppose 
that we have long since passed out of this world — that time 
has run its course — that day and night, summer and win- 
ter, seed time and harvest have all ceased; that the sun 
has refused to give his light, that the stars have fallen from 
heaven, that the moon blushes in blood, and the heavens 
have rolled up as a scroll. And now the Son of God, the 
great eternal Judge, has come out on his throne. Thou- 
sands of angels are around him. Before him, wide open, 
are the books of eternal remembrance. The trumpet has 
sounded. The dead that have been buried in the earth and 
the sea have come up from their graves to meet us in the 
judgment ; and those of us who are wicked are about to "go 
away into everlasting punishment, and the righteous into 
life eternal." Bemember, I am supposing that we are 
standing in judgment before the great God who knows the 
secrets of all our hearts. 0, how solemn is the question, are 
we going into heaven or into hell ? Many of us are about 
to say, " we are Christians, we joined the church, we have 
been baptized, we have taken the Lord's Supper, certain! 



' 



OUTWARD RELIGION. 345 

we shall not be rejected — " Lord, Lord, open to us." But 
ah, my friends, this will not be enough. The judg- 
ment bar of God is no place to prepare for heaven. Many 
who trusted in a false hope that they were prepared, will 
then " seek to enter in but shall not be able." Seated above 
that great crowd will be the eternal Judge looking into the 
very heart of every sinner. Then he will say, with a ter- 
rible voice, to every unprepared sinner, " I never knew you, 
depart from me ye workers of iniquity." 

Let us, then, feel as if we were standing in the sight of 
this Judge, and of the throne of eternal justice, while we 
examine ourselves whether we be ready to go into heaven. 

1. I think I hear some of you say, "I have made a pro- 
fession of religion — I have been baptized. Is not this 
onough to go to heaven upon?" I answer, no. Before a 
man can go to heaven he must have something more than 
this. You have stood up in the congregation of God's 
people, and told an experience of what you have felt, and 
seen, and heard. But they could not look into your heart. 
They could tell you what they think of your religion. 
But they could see no further into your heart than you 
could see into theirs. They could now and then ask you a 
question, and then hang down their heads and look very 
thoughtful. But they could no more tell whether your 
heart was changed than they could tell how many hypo- 
crites there are burning in hell. They were just as apt to 
be mistaken about you as you are about them. For all you 
know, while they examined you, they might have been de- 
ceiving themselves. But God does not judge your religion 
by what you say in your experience. While he commands 
you to confess him before man, he will not accept you upon 
that alone. You must believe on him with your heart and 



346 SERMON XXIX. 

honour him with your life. Many a man has made a loud 
and long profession of religion, and after all, has proved, 
long before he reached the gate of death, that his profes- 
sion was false and vain — that he was not worthy to go into 
the kingdom. I knew a very wicked man once to go to an 
association. The spirit of the Lord seemed to come down 
and to move upon the hearts of sinners. The preaching 
was solemn and searching. Presently, the heart of the 
wicked man was touched. The tears of conviction and 
repentance rolled down his cheeks. He kneeled down and 
the ministers of God prayed over him. Many Christians 
gathered round to encourage him. Presently, he lifted up 
his hands and praised God with a loud voice. He felt that 
he was converted — Christians all round him thought he was 
converted, and all joined in one general rejoicing that he 
had been " snatched as a brand from the burning." Some 
weeks passed away, and he came forward to join the church. 
He gave in his experience. His profession of religion was 
clear and full, and not a voice was raised against him. 
Every one gladly welcomed him into the church; and in 
token of love gave him the right hand of fellowship. A 
year passed away, and he seemed to be doing very well. 
But at last, it began to be whispered about that he was in 
the habit of drinking too much. He was brought up be- 
fore the church to be tried, and it was proved that, even 
from the time of his professed conversion to that day, he 
had been in the habit of drinking too much. And yet they 
did not put him out of the church. Do you wish to know 
the reason ? I will tell you. As soon as he found they 
were about to expel him for intemperance, he turned to 
them and said, " my brethren, I am no worse than many 
others of you." He then brought special charges against 



OUTWARD RELIGION. 347 

each one of them, of conduct quite as bad, if not worse 
than his drunkenness. He proved to them, that if they 
turned him out, nearly all of them would have to be turned 
out. In a word, the very men who had listened to his ex- 
perience and had received him into the church, were obliged 
to confess that, though they had made a profession of reli- 
gion, had been baptized, and seemed to be religious, yet knew 
nothing of the reality of religion, were not fit to be mem- 
bers of the church here, much less members of the kingdom 
of heaven. It is an easy matter, my friends, to make a pro- 
fession of religion and to put on a show of piety. It is 
easy to make your fellow men believe that you are con- 
verted. But God searches the heart. He cannot be de- 
ceived/ If the heart be not changed you can never go into 
heaven, no matter what profession you may make — no mat- 
ter how you may hide your sins here, if you are not, in 
heart, a child of God, you cannot enter into the kingdom 
of heaven. God will then bring every secret thing into 
judgment, and though you may cry, "Lord, Lord, open to 
us;"" his answer will be, " I never knew you, depart from 
me ye workers of iniquity." 

2. Again, I think I hear some of you say, "I was once 
converted : may I not go into heaven on this ?" I answer, no. 
Satan deceives his thousands every year by making them 
believe they are converted when they are not. I cannot 
explain to you how Satan works upon your minds. But he 
certainly does it. He tries to blind your eyes and harden 
your hearts, and very often makes you believe you are con- 
verted when you have never repented of sin. All he cares 
for is to keep your soul out of heaven. And if he can do 
this as well by making you believe you are converted when 
you are not, he is just as well satisfied as if you were to live 



348 SERMON XXIX. 

on in hatred against God. If any of you profess to be con- 
verted, and yet go on living in sin, you may be certain that 
Satan has your heart. No matter how secret you may be 
in your sins, Satan has your heart. No matter how you 
may feel that all is right, Satan has your heart. Satan 
makes you think you are converted. Satan makes you 
think you are right, and Satan will keep you in that state 
if he can. I have known, and you have known a great 
many persons who profess conversion, and to profess it so 
loudly and earnestly, that you felt obliged to believe that 
they were converted ; they seemed to be so deeply penitent 
for sin, they made so many solemn promises, and, for a time, 
seemed to be such bright Christians, that you would have 
thought any one very uncharitable to say they were not 
converted. And yet, they soon fell back and left the cause 
of Christ. I knew a young man once to be deeply con- 
vinced of sin. For some weeks he was the most unhappy 
being I ever saw. He scarcely ever spoke to any one, and 
would sometimes strike on his breast and cry out, u God be 
merciful to me a sinner." But at last he found peace and 
felt that he was converted. For a time he was as happy 
as he had before been miserable. He was baptized and 
joined the church. After some months he was placed in a 
situation where many temptations were around him. He 
yielded to them and soon went back to the world. He went 
on from one sin to another until he ceased entirely to go to 
church. He became a wretched drunkard, an object of pity 
and contempt to all who knew him. One night at a late 
hour, I was roused from a sound sleep by a rap at the door 
of my house. It was a messagenger sent to ask me to go 
and see this young man. I found him dying. " 0, sir," said 
he, " can you tell me if there is any hope for me in this 



OUTWARD RELIGION. 349 

fearful hour ?" I tried to tell him of a pardoning Saviour. 
But I could see nothing from which I could tell him that I 
believed his sins were pardoned. At last, he turned to me, 
and said, "was I not once converted? Do you think I 
could have fallen from grace ? Will God ever, finally, give 
up those whom his spirit has renewed ?" And then, with a 
look which seemed to say, "I am lost," he said, "but 0, 
how far I have wandered from him in the ways of sin !" 
These were his last words. I stood by his side and wit- 
nessed a death, such as I hope never to see again. Do not 
deceive yourselves, then, by the hope, that because you 
were once converted, you shall, therefore, be saved. Though 
you may profess to have been once converted, yet if you 
live in sin, you may be sure that you have either never been 
converted, or if you have, that you have turned back again. 
Tell me not of what you once felt and enjoyed, when you 
first professed conversion. I want to know what your reli- 
gion is now? And I. tell you, if you do not show by your 
life now that you are converted, all your professions will be 
in vain. If you are trusting merely to the peace, and love, 
and joy you then felt, I tell you, in God's name, that all this 
will do you no good. If you have nothing but this, you may 
knock at the door of heaven itself, and say, " Lord, Lord, 
open to us;" but his answer will be, " I never knew you." 

My friends, let me warn you against the deceitfulness of 
sin. Sin is the child of Satan ; and Satan is said to be 
the father of lies. Sin is his most deceitful and lying child. 
Our Saviour tells us of some persons whom sin had per- 
suaded to make loud professions of religion, and even to 
preach and prophecy in God's name. Yet these were 
wicked persons. So deceitful was sin in their hearts, that 
our Lord speaks of them as going up to the gate of heaven, 

30 



350 SERMON XXIX. 

telling him what great things they had done, and asking to 
be admitted there. And so sin deceives thousands who pro- 
fess to be Christians. It makes them believe, that because 
they have some of the feelings and the outward appearance 
of religion, they are religious. And many of them never 
find out their mistake until death comes — perhaps not till 
after death. If a man has nothing but outward religion he 
cannot pass through the gate of heaven. I mean by outward 
religion, a religion of mere profession. This is very different 
from the religion of the heart. A man with mere outward 
religion may go through the world very well — he may be a 
fair member of the church; he may be baptized and 
go to the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper; he may do 
many things that seem to be religious; he may often 
be heard saying, " Lord, Lord;" he may even seem to die 
in peace. But when he stands before the bar of judgment, 
God will say, " I never knew you ; depart from me ye workers 
of iniquity." 

A very rich man once had a neighbour who visited his 
house almost every day, and was always doing him some act 
of kindness and praising him to his face. Whenever this 
rich man wanted any thing done, he always found this 
neighbour ready at hand to do it. Sometimes he would go 
to him and offer to attend to any business for him, and to 
go on long journeys without charging him a dollar. Of 
course this rich man valued this kind neighbour very much. 
He thought him a good and useful man, and when he died, 
intended to leave him some of his property. But this rich 
man could see nothing but the outward conduct of his 
neighbour. He did not know what was going on in his 
heart. At last he found out that this kind neighbour was 
doing him all this service, not because he loved him, but 



OUTWARD RELIGION. 351 

because lie hoped to get his money when he was dead — he 
hoped he would remember him in his will. Now, when the 
rich man saw that all his kindness and goodness was nothing 
more than selfishness — that he did it all just because he 
expected to be benefited himself; when the rich man saw 
this, he told him he would have nothing more to do with 
him — he would not permit him to come into his presence. 
At last th^ rich man was taken sick, and his neighbour 
called to see him. But he said to his servant, go, stand at 
the door, and say to him, " you cannot come into this house, 
sir, my master will not see you — you come not because you 
love him, but because you love yourself and hope to get his 
money — all your kindness to him was from love to yourself 
and not love to him. Depart from this place, he will not 
receive you." Now, suppose this rich man to be God, and 
this neighbour to be yourselves — do you not see that God 
will not receive you into heaven, for all your works and out- 
ward religion, unless those works be done out of pure love 
to him ? 0, my friends, may God search your hearts now 
before it be for ever too late ! May he say to you in that 
last day, " come ye blessed of my Father, receive the king- 
dom prepared for you from the beginning of the world." 

Many persons go to church very regularly, they profess 
the name of Christ, they join themselves to the church, 
they are baptized and take the sacrament, they go to every 
prayer meeting, they sing and pray much — with this, they 
think they are fit for the kingdom of heaven. But when 
you talk to those who are with them every day, and ask 
what sort of Christians they are? they will tell you that, 
" Sometimes they seem to be very religious — they talk much 
about their religion, but they need to be watched — that 
they often get very angry for trifling causes ; that they are 



352 SERMON XXIX. 

insulting in their language, that they speak unkindly of 
their fellow-servants and fellow-Christians, that they often 
break the Sabbath by trading, and when they make a bar- 
gain with a fellow-servant, they are very close, and if not 
watched they will* take the advantage." 

Let me tell you, now, that true religion is something 
more than all this. He who is truly religious will try to 
do the whole will of God. He will be faithfu^to all the 
duties he owes to God and to man. He is religious in the 
closet, religious in the church, religious in his daily busi- 
ness, religious on the Sabbath, religious all the week 
through ; religious in secret, religious before the world, reli- 
gious all through life, religious in death. " Whether he 
eats or drinks, or whatever he does, he does all to the glory 
of God." 

Now, tell me, what sort of a religion is yours ? Does it 
act only on the outward conduct, or does it act on the 
heart also ? What do you depend on for admittance into 
heaven ? Are you trusting to the fact, that you have been 
baptized, that you have joined the church, that you were 
once converted, that you can pray well, that you have taken 
the Lord's Supper ? Are these all the reasons you have for 
thinking you will go into heaven ? Is this all your reli- 
gion ? Then I must tell you the truth, that this will not do. 
This is not enough to take you to heaven. Your very boast- 
ing of these things proves that you are a stranger to true 
heart religion. You may go up to the door of heaven with 
these things on your lips — you may say, "Lord, Lord.'/ 
But you will stand at the door in vain. God will say, " I 
never knew you, depart from me." 

0, then, set about this work oftrue religion with all your 
heart. Make religion your life. Think about it, talk about 



OUTWARD RELIGION. 353 

it, and act it every day that you live. Do all you can to 
be prepared for heaven, e\ery night you lie down to sleep. 

I was once sent for to bury a man, who had all his life been 
honest and moral, and good to his servants. Every one 
who knew him loved him. His servants all followed him to 
the grave ; and many of them stood weeping that they 
should see him no more. When we had covered up the 
coffin and were turning away, I heard one of the servants 
say, "well, master was a good man, he was always kind to 
us and to every body. I think he has gone to heaven.'' 
An old and faithful Christian, walking by his side, said to 
him, " No, I am afraid master has not gone to heaven. He 
was a kind man and did some good. But I am afraid he 
has not gone to heaven. Because, whenever master was 
about to go on any long journey, he always made many 
preparations for it — he always talked about it, and told us 
where he was going. But I never saw him make any pre- 
parations for going to heaven. I never heard him say he 
was going there. I am afraid he has not gone to heaven. 
He would have told us something about it." But God only 
knows. 

This is true, my friends. If our hearts are fixed on 
heaven, we will always be trying to make some prepara- 
tions for it. People around us will see it. Our whole life 
will show that we are striving for heaven. Go, then, and 
beg God, for Jesus Christ's sake, to teach you your duty — 
beg him to wash you in his blood — beg him to give you his 
spirit — beg him to enable you to love him with all your 
heart — beg him to help you to forsake every evil way, and 
in all things to do his will. So shall you be found fit to go 
into the kingdom of heaven. 



30* 



354 SERMON XXIX. 

CM. 

There is a path that leads to God, 

All others go astray ; 
Narrow, but pleasant, is the road. 

And Christians love the way. 

It leads straight through this world of sin, 

And dangers must be past ; 
But those who boldly walk therein 
4 Will come to heaven at last, 

How shall a timid pilgrim dare 
This dangerous path to tread ? 

For on the way is many a snare 
For weary travellers spread ; 

"While the broad road where thousands go, 
Lies near, and epens fair : 

And many turn aside, I know, 
To walk with sinners there. 

But, lest my feeble steps should slide, 

Or wander from thy way, 
Lord, condescend to be my guide, 

And I shall never stray. 



Questions. 1. — Will a profession of religion save you ? 2. Do all 
who join the church go to heaven ? 2 What will become of many of 
those who go to the bar of God, saying they had professed his name ? 

4. Will it be enough then, for a man to say, " I was once converted V* 

5. What must a man think about his conversion if he lives in sin ? 

6. What is said about the deceitfulness of sin ? 7. Has sin deceived 
many souls until they have gone to the very judgment seat of Christ ? 
8. What will the truly religious man try to do ? 9. How must a 
man show his religion here ? 



SERMON XXX. 

DUTIES OP SERVANTS TO GOD. 

BY THE REV. THOMAS BACON. ABRIDGED BY BISHOP MEADE. 

" Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same 
shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free." — Ephe- 
sians vi. 8. 

I have chosen a text of Scripture, which I could wish 
you all had by heart, and would all remember. It shows 
you what a great friend you have in heaven, if you will 
but take any pains to gain his favor. For St. Paul, who 
wrote by the direction of the Holy Spirit, tells you, that 
whatsoever good thing any man or woman doeth, they shall 
receive the same ; that is, shall be rewarded by the Lord, 
whether they be bond or free. And this cannot but give 
you great comfort to know, and be assured, that whatever 
good thing you do, though you be slaves, bound to serve 
masters and mistresses here upon earth, yet, while you are 
doing what is right and good, if you strive to please your 
Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, who also became a servant, 
and if you humbly look to him for your salvation, he will 
pay you good wages, and make no difference between you 
and the richest man upon earth. God is no respecter of 
persons. He does not despise or overlook any one for 
their rags or poverty. He loves none but those who hum- 

(355) 



356 SERMON XXX. 

bly strive to be good and holy, calling upon him for help, 
and he hates none but those who will be wicked, because 
they will not ask for grace through his dear Son. Our 
Lord and Saviour hath given us an account from his own 
mouth, of a certain great man who had riches and plea- 
sures at will while he lived in this world; but he was 
thrown into hell at his death, because he was not good, 
and did not think upon God ; while a poor, despised beggar, 
all overrun with sores and filth, who died for want at .this 
rich man's gate, was carried by angels into Abraham's 
bosom ; because he had been a good man and served his 
heavenly Master so far as he had knowledge and oppor- 
tunity. 

That you may easier understand, and better carry away 
in your memory what you shall hear, I shall try by God's 
help, to lay before you in the plainest words, 1st, Why you 
ought to serve God. 2dly, What service God expects from 
you. 3dly, What reward you may expect from him. 

1. The first reason why you ought to serve God, is, 
because God made you, and made you and all men to serve 
him. You know that when you were born, you did not 
come into the world by any power or help of your own. 
You were so far from knowing any thing about it, or how 
you came here, that it was some years before you could 
help yourselves, or know your right hand from your left. 
It was Almighty God, therefore, who made you and all the 
world, who sent you here as he had sent your fathers and 
mothers, your masters and mistresses before you, to take 
care of you and provide for you, while you could take no 
care of or provide for yourselves. And can you think that 
Almighty God, who is so wise and good himself, would 
send you into the world for any bad purposes, or to idle 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS TO GOP. 357 

away your time ? Surely, all of you must know that God 
sent you here to be good, and to keep his commandments, 
and then, no matter how poor and mean your condition 
may be, you are serving God. This whole world is but one 
large family, of which Almighty God is the Head and Mas- 
ter, providing food and shelter for all living creatures ; but 
to mankind in particular, he hath given reason and know- 
ledge, to teach them how to make use of, and turn all these 
things to their own comfort and support, giving more or 
less of them to every one, according as he thinks fit, and 
as he knows to be best for them. 

2. A second reason why you ought to serve God is, be- 
cause you have souls to be saved. If you cannot get much 
in tlfis world, you have a place ready for you in heaven, 
when you die and go into the next world, if you will be at 
the pains of seeking for it while you stay here. And there 
is no other way of getting to heaven, but by serving God 
upon earth. Besides, when people die, we know of but two 
places they have to go to — that is, heaven or hell : so that 
whoever misses the one, must go to the other. Now, 
heaven is a place of great happiness, which God hath pre- 
pared for all that love him, and truly believe in his Son 
Jesus Christ. There they shall enjoy rest from their 
labours, and a blessedness which shall have no end. And 
hell is a place of great torment and misery, where all the 
wicked shall be shut up with the devil and other evil spi- 
rits, and be punished for ever, because they would not 
repent and serve God in this life. It was to save you and 
all men from this dreadful punishment, that our blessed 
Lord Jesus Christ came down from heaven. He was made 
a man like us, and suffered a most shameful and bitter 
death, his hands and feet being nailed to a cross-piece of 



I 

358 SERMON XXX. 

timber, and his side pierced through with a spear, as le 
hung upon it in all that agony and pain. And if he so 
loved our souls that he gave himself up to so cruel a death, 
to redeem them from hell, ought not we to have as much 
love for ourselves as he had, and take some pains to save 
our own souls ? Believe me, there was not a single drop 
of his precious blood spilled, in which the poorest of you 
had not as great a share as the richest person upon the face 
of the earth. And think, think, what a sad thing it 
must be to lose any soul which cost Almighty God so dear 
as the life of his own well beloved Son. But you must 
always remember, that though our Saviour died for the 
sins of all men, yet none shall have the benefit of what he 
did for us, but such as will serve God. If, therefor*, we 
would have our souls saved by Christ ; if we would escape 
hell and gain heaven, we must truly repent of all our sins, 
obtain a new heart through Christ, and serve God faith- 
fully all the days of our life. Your own circumstances in 
this life ought to put you upon providing for your souls in 
the next. After all your strivings for it, you cannot get 
much in this life, as some people can who choose to lose 
their souls for some poor treasures they are laying up here. 
If you sell your souls for such poor matters as you can get 
in this world, you have made a wretched bargain indeed. 
And what a dreadful thing it will be, if, after all, you 
should become the slaves of the devil in that horrid place 
where there is no rest day or night, and no Sabbath ever 
comes. I pray you always to remember the words of our 
Lord, which were intended as much for you as for the 
richest and greatest persons in the world : what shall it 
profit a man if he gain the whole world, and yet lose his 






DUTIES OF SERVANTS TO GOD. 359 



own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his 
soul? 

2. I promised to speak to you about the service which 
God expects from you. 

And here you must not expect that you can be any 
benefit or advantage to Almighty God by serving him. 
He that hath millions of glorious and powerful angels, 
waiting always round his throne in heaven, and ready 
every moment to do his commands, cannot stand in need 
of any help or service from the hands of such poor mean 
creatures as we are. But when God made us, he intended 
that we should all be happy with him in heaven when we 
leave this world. And we may be happy with him, if we 
would live in such a manner here, and have our hearts so 
changed by his grace as to be fit company for his blessed 
saints and angels hereafter. For he delights in the hap- 
piness of all his creatures. His Holy Spirit is grieved when 
they, by their wickedness, make themselves miserable. He 
has given us certain rules to walk by, and certain blessed 
promises to live upon. When we attend to these things, 
then we serve him. Now all these rules relate to these 
four things : 1st, Our duty to God ; 2d, To one another ; 
3d, To those who rule over us ; and 4th, To ourselves. 

1. In the first place, your duty towards God is to look 
upon him as your great and chief master. To him you 
are accountable for all your behaviour, either in public or 
private, both towards yourselves and all mankind. You 
are to remember, that you can do nothing so secretly but 
he will know it. No place is so private and dark but his 
all-piercing eye can see what you are doing in it. The 
darkness and light are both alike to him. You are further 
to consider, that his eyes are always upon you, and that it 



360 SERMON XXX. 






is impossible for you to hide yourselves a single moment 
out of his sight; that he is pleased when he sees you doing 
right, and angry with you when he sees you doing any 
thing that is sinful. And this surely will be a great check 
upon you when you feel like doing any thing wrong, to 
think that Almighty God is that very moment looking at 
you. So that if it should be done so secretly and artfully 
as never to be known in this world, yet your heavenly 
Master sees it, and knows it, and will not fail to punish 
you for it in the next world, if not in this. This thought 
also, will be of great comfort and encouragement to you in 
doing what is right and good ; for, if no one else should 
take notice of it, you are su*e God will. And if you should 
meet with no reward in this life, you know that Almighty 
God is the best of Masters. He will not forget you in the 
next world. And our text tells us, that whatsoever good 
thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, 
whether he be bond or free. 

2. Another duty you owe to the Lord is, to love him 
with all your heart, and mind, and soul, and strength ; that 
is, you must love him more than all other things. Indeed, 
if you will but seriously consider what God has done, is 
doing, and will do for you hereafter, if it be not your own 
fault, you cannot but feel the great duty of loving him above 
all things. Hath not God made you ? Has he not given 
you all the comforts you have enjoyed in this life ? Has 
he not given you, along with the rest of mankind, sense • 
and reason beyond all other sorts of earthly creatures ? 
Has he not kept and supported you to this very hour ? 
Even now, are you not living by his goodness ? But he 
has done greater things than these for you. He has given 
you immortal souls. They can enjoy everlasting happiness. 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS TO GOD. 361 

And, above all, think upon his wonderful love and mercy, 
in sending his Son to die for you ; in leaving with you so 
many precious promises, and directions, and means of grace, 
so that you might surely be saved. And will he not give you 
heaven itself, if you will make good use of the opportunities 
he has given you of becoming wise unto salvation ? You 
see that Almighty God has thought nothing too good for 
you. Surely you cannot think any thing too great for him. 
Take good heed that you do not let idleness, and vanity, 
and lust, and drunkenness, run away with those hearts and 
affections which you ought to give entirely to the service of 
so good a God. For while you desire to do any thing which 
is not lawful and right, you love that thing. I care not 
what it is, you love it more than you love God, and there- 
fore, he will not love you ; and the loss of God's love is the 
greatest loss in the world to you. 

3. Another duty you owe to God is fear. Now there 
are two sorts of fear, the one comes from love, the other 
from terror. If you truly love any one, you are afraid of 
doing any thing that will make him uneasy. And if you 
love God truly, you will be afraid of doing any ill thing, 
because you know that the Holy Spirit is grieved at your 
wickedness. Let this thought be strongly fixed in your 
hearts ; and when sinful desires arise within you, and evil 
inclinations begin to get the better, then remember that the 
great God is looking at you. Then you should say within 
yourselves, as Joseph said, when he was tempted to sin, 
" how can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God." 
Joseph had such a fear and dread of displeasing God, that 
he would rather suffer and go to prison, and stay there 
several years, rather than be guilty of sin. And our blessed 
Saviour, speaking of this holy dread of offending God, said, 

31 



362 SEEMON XXX. 

" fear not them which are only able to 'kill the body ; but 
rather fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul 
in hell." 

4. Another duty you owe to God, is prayer, both public 
and private. Prayer is speaking freely to Almighty God, 
asking of him a supply of all that is needful. If you will 
think of this, you must surely see the advantage of prayer, 
and be more engaged in it. You cannot say that you want 
words — for if you want any favour from your fellow-crea- 
tures, you can easily find words : 

" Words flow apace where you complain, 
And fill your fellow-creature's ear 
With the sad tale of all your care ; 
Were half the breath thus vainly spent 
To Heaven, in supplication sent, 
Your cheerful songs would often be, 
Hear what the Lord has done for me." 

If you will not ask a blessing of God in prayer, you can- 
not expect to have it ; if you will not seek his favour, you 
cannot expect to find it ; if you will" not take the trouble of 
knocking at the door of heaven, you cannot hope to have it 
opened to you. It is not long prayers, nor fine words, that 
God requires. If the heart be anxious to have any thing, 
the tongue will find out words to tell it in. But God looks 
upon the heart more than the tongue. He will grant more 
than you ask of him, if it be for your good. And you need 
never want time for your prayers. You can think of your 
souls, and pray thus, within the house or the field, whether 
you are up or in bed, walking or working, at the plough, 
the axe, the hoe, or the spade. God is always ready to 
hear you. But remember this, you must always strive to 
be what you pray God to make you If you want God to 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS TO GOD. 363 

make you good, or sober, or honest, or diligent, you must 
try to be that good, and sober, and honest, and diligent 
person you want to be; for God says, if any one turn 
away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall 
be an abomination. 

5. Another duty you owe to Almighty God is truth. God 
is a God of truth, and hates all liars. In one place, 
Solomon says, that " lying lips are an abomination to the 
Lord." In another place, our Lord and Saviour says, that 
the devil is a liar, and the father of -liars. In another, St. 
John says, that all liars shall have their portion in the lake 
that burneth with fire and brimstone — that is, in hell. Now 
you see that some persons seem to think it a small thing to 
tell falsehoods. But if you want to make yourself hateful 
and abominable in the eyes of God ; if you have a mind to 
become the devil's children, and to plunge yourself head- 
long into the flames of hell, you cannot take a surer way 
to do it, than to get into the habit of telling what is not 
true. 

6. I shall only mention one other duty which you owe to 
God, and then conclude. You must keep his holy Sabbath 
day. All days belong to God, but this especially is called 
the Lord's day. He commands all men, masters and servants 
to keep this day, because he hallowed it. He appointed it 
not more for his glory than our good. It was not necessary 
to keep our bodies from being worn down by constant and 
hard labour, but to keep our souls from being worn out in 
the service of the world and sin, that God set apart this clay. 
And in the Bible he has threatened some heavy punishment 
on all who will not keep his Sabbaths as he commands. The 
glorious life above, is sometimes called our everlasting Sab- 
bath, when we shall always be employed in worshiping and 



364 SERMON XXX. 

loving God. But none will ever be received to that ever- 
lasting Sabbath, but those who are prepared for it by spend- 
ing God's Sabbaths upon earth in the right way. There is 
nothing which seems to provoke God more than to see men 
abuse his blessed Sabbath days. There is no surer proof 
that a man neither fears nor loves God, than to see him idle 
away this precious time, or spend it in bad company, or in 
doing any kind of work that is not necessary to be done in 
it. A man that can wilfully break the Sabbath, instead of 
spending it in prayer and serving God, and learning his duty 
from those who are able to teach it, can easily be led into 
every crime. And I am afraid it is the case with too many, 
that they commit more sin on the Sabbath, than on all the 
other days of the week ; they make use of their leisure time 
to engage in all kinds of sin and wickedness. All such 
may be well assured that if they abuse God's Sabbaths in 
this world, they will have no more to abuse in the next. 
There they will be sold to a hard master, who will keep 
them for ever employed, day and night, without rest. He 
will give them nothing for their wages, but the miserable 
thought that they had ruined themselves for ever. 

May God save us from such a dreadful portion as this, 
for his dear son, our Lord Jesus Christ's sake. , 

CM. 

Thou, from whom all goodness flows, 

I lift my heart to Thee ; 
In all my sorrows, conflicts, woes, 

Dear Lord, remember me ! 

"When on my guilty, burdened heart 

My sins lie heavily, 
My pardon speak, new peace impart, 

In love, remember me I 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS TO GOD. 365 

Temptations sore obstruct my way, 

And ills I cannot flee ; 
0, give me strength, Lord, as my day, 

And still remember me ! 

Distressed with pain, disease, and grief, 

This feeble body see ; 
Grant patience, rest, and kind relief; 

Hear, and remember me ; 

If on my face, for thy dear name, 

Shame and reproaches be, 
Fll hail reproach, and welcome shame, 

If thou remember me. 



The hour is near, the hour of death, 

I own the just decree : 
And when I draw my parting breath, 

Saviour, remember me ! 



Questions. — 1. "Who made all men ? 2. "What did he make them 
for? 3. Is that any reason why you ought to serve him ? 4. "What 
have you that is so valuable to be saved or lost ? 5. What great duty 
do you owe to God ? 6. What is it to fear God ? 7. What is said 
about telling the truth ? 8. What about the Sabbath ? 




SERMON XXXI. 

DUTIES OF SERVANTS TO MASTERS AND 
FELLOW-SERVANTS. 

BY THE KEV. THOMAS BACON — ABKIDGED BY BISHOP MEADE. 

Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same 
shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. — Ephesians 
vi. 8. 

When you were last here, my good friends, I tried to show 
you that God made you and all the world. He made you 
and all men to serve him. Whoever is honestly and quietly 
doing his duty in the world, in whatever condition he is 
placed, looking up to God and trying to please him, and 
humbly trusting to Jesus Christ for salvation, that man is 
actually serving God and will be accepted of him on the 
great day. 

I tried to show you what duty you owed to God in par- 
ticular — that you ought to look upon him as your great 
and chief master, to whom you must one day answer for 
every thing you have done in this life — that he is always 
looking upon you, and taking notice of you, so that if you 
could deceive all the world, you cannot deceive God. I 
tried to show you truly, that if you love God truly, you 
will be afraid of doing any thing that is wicked, because 
(366) 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS. 867 

he is grieved to see men destroy their souls by sin — that 
you ought also to dread his terrible judgments, because he 
is not only able to destroy your bodies, but to cast your 
souls into hell — that you ought to keep God's Sabbaths, and 
come to public worship as often as possible, and to pray to 
God in private when you are in the house or in the field, 
when you are working or resting, because God is always 
ready to hear us pray when our hearts are ready. 

And now I shall go on to state to you some of those 
duties which you owe to your earthly masters, to your fel- 
low-servants and to yourselves. 

And first, let me speak to you about the duty you owe 
to those who have the rule over you. 

There is one direction you should always carry in your 
minds. That is, you should do all service to them as if you 
did it for God himself. I have only to read over to you 
God ; s own words, that you may see that this rule is true : 
U Servants be obedient to them that are your masters 
according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness 
of heart as unto Christ; not with eye-service as men- 
pleasers, but as the servants of Christ doing the will of 
God from the heart ; with good will doing service as to the 
Lord, and not unto men ; knowing that whatsoever good 
thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the 
Lord, whether he be bond or free." On the contrary, 
remember it is written, that " he who doeth wrong, shall 
receive for the wrong which he hath done, and there is no 
respect of persons with him." God also directs servants 
to be subject to their masters with all fear, not only to the 
good and gentle but also to the froward. The ministers 
of God are expressly commanded to exhort servants to be 
obedient to their own masters and to please them well in 



SERMON XXXI. 

all things, not answering again ; that is, not murmuring or 
gainsaying. You are also told not to be eye-servants ; that 
is, not to do your task well only when you are in the sight 
of those to whom you belong, or who are appointed to over- 
look you. But you must always remember that you have 
a master in heaven. His back is never turned upon you. 
His eye is always over you. From him nothing can pos- 
sibly be hid. He will be angry with you for all unfaithful- 
ness and deceit. But he will also reward you fully for 
every service you faithfully do for your masters and mis- 
tresses here, if you do it also to please him; if you do it 
with the humble hope that you may be accepted through 
the merits of that blessed Saviour, who came in the form 
of a servant, and died a miserable death for our salvation. 

Let me mention one other duty which you owe to your 
earthly masters, and which you should do as in the sight 
of God. I mean the duty of strict honesty. God has told 
all men, bond or free, " thou shalt not steal." This was 
spoken in thunder from Mount Sinai, and Moses was told 
to write it on a table of stone. Again, the apostle was 
commanded to say, " let him that stole steal no more," and 
more particularly was he inspired to exhort servants " not 
to purloin, that is, steal, but to show all good fidelity." 
Surely these words of God are enough to show that all 
kinds of dishone-sty, no matter who commits it, or from 
whom the things are taken, whether from your own mas- 
ters and mistresses, your fellow-servants, or any other per- 
sons in the world, are forbidden by God, and will be 
punished by him either in this life or in the next. 

Having shown you out of God's word your duty to your 
earthly governors, I shall now go on to speak of some of 
those duties which you owe to your fellow-servants. 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS. 369 

And first, the great rule which Almighty God has given 
us in this case is, "to love one another." Let me read you 
his own words as we have them in the blessed Bible. " This 
is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have 
loved you." "By this shall all men know that ye are my 
disciples, if ye have love one to another." Again, " Be ye 
kindly affectioned one to another in brotherly love." There 
are many reasons why we should all love one another. 
One is, that we are all one large family under God our 
father and master. He commands "us to love one another 
as brothers and fellow-servants ought to do. Have we not 
all one Father ? Hath not one God created us ? saith one 
of the prophets. If we only mind this one great rule of 
loving one another, we shall do every thing which God 
requires of us. Your fellow-servants are to be looked upon 
more particularly as your brethren. Your situation, your 
colour, your marriages one with another, make you nearer 
to each other than to any other persons in the world. It 
would be very strange, indeed, if you were not kind 
and affectionate to each other. Perhaps some of you will 
say, we are not able to do much for each other. We are 
poor and stand in need ourselves. But suppose this should 
be so, yet you can do what is far better. You can help 
each other in the way to heaven. You can give each other 
good advice. You can check one another when you see any 
thing wrong. You can encourage one another to do what 
is right. You can pray together, and for one another. On 
a Sunday evening you can tell what you heard at church 
or meeting, to those who were not there, and thus do good 
to yourselves, by making you remember it the better. By 
your example and good conversation, you can prevent a 
great deal of wickedness and bad words, and thus help the 



370 



SERMON XXXI. 



ministers in their work ver y much. And there is one kind 
of love and charity you may show to the worst of your fel- 
low-servants — that is, to pray for them. God may, per- 
haps, receive your prayers and touch their hearts though 
you cannot. That would be a great blessing both to them 
and to you. But besides good advice and prayer, you must 
never forget one important thing — that is, a good example. 
If they do not mind what you say, perhaps they may mind 
what you do. Perhaps the shame of seeing so great a 
difference between them and you, may put them upon 
striving to be like you. There is something so winning in 
a regular, modest, sober and pious behaviour, that none 
but the most wicked people can see it, without wishing to 
be like the person that has so many good qualities. How 
happy are those who have examples of this sort set before 
their eyes. How much more happy, if they would seriously 
and in earnest, strive to follow such examples. Many 
of you are married and have numbers of children. You 
surely owe them good examples. Many of these children, 
who are brought up in the quarters. They see little but 
what you show them. Now, if you set bad examples, you 
may be sure they will do the like. And your sin will not 
only destroy your own souls, but will lead your children to 
do the same. By thus going before them, you will lead 
them, as it were by the hand, in the straight road to hell. 
! it is a sad and grievous thought that your bad example 
will not only bring yourselves into everlasting misery, but 
your poor, unhappy children also. But, if you behave your- 
selves well, and set a good example, you shall save your 
souls, through the tender mercy of God. You shall give 
your little ones cause to bless you after your death. For 
you showed them the way to be happy in another world, 



DUTIES OF SEKVANTS. 371 

and to get possessions there of far greater value than the 
world you live in. And if it be so much your duty to give 
good advice and good examples to your fellow-servants, how 
great must be the sin of tempting or persuading any one to 
wickedness ? It is the devil's own office. He delights to 
make people wicked. Now, if you try by advice or per- 
suasion to make others bad, so far you are doing the devil's 
work. If you persuade a fellow-creature to lie or swear 
for you ; to help you to deceive your owners or others ; to 
cheat, rob, or steal ; to get drunk with you or take part 
with you in any kind of wickedness, you may be sure that 
God will punish you not only for your own sins, but he will 
punish you on account of those whom you have wickedlv 
drawn into sin. Take care, then, that you do not brm^ 
the blood of others upon your own heads. To murder a 
poor soul, by causing any one to sin, is the worst of all 
murders. 

And now, after taking so much pains to show you how 
truly you ought to love one another, you may easily see 
that Almighty God will be very angry with you, if you be 
ill natured and spiteful towards your fellow-servants or any 
other persons. Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is so 
far from suffering any of his disciples to bear any hatred 
or ill will in their hearts, that he commands us to love the 
very worst enemies and such as are trying to do us mis- 
chief. The rule he has given us is this, " I say unto you, 
love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to 
them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully 
use you and persecute you." And the reason he gives for 
it is this, " that ye may be the children of your Father in 
heaven ; for he maketh the sun to rise upon the evil and 
upon the good, and sendeth his rain upon the just and upon 



372 SERMON XXXI. 

the unjust ;" that is, that we may show ourselves to be the 
children of God, by being like him who is so good, that he 
does not take away the comfort of the sun and rain, nor 
the common blessings of this life, even from wicked people, 
though they are always provoking him, and do not deserve 
the least of his mercies to them. Besides this, he has given 
us the greatest encouragement to forgive every one that 
has done us any harm or mischief. He has promised that 
for Christ's sake he will forgive us our sins against him, but 
not unless we forgive others. He has most positively said, 
that if we forgive men their trespasses, he will also forgive 
our trespasses, but if we forgive not men their trespasses, 
neither will our heavenly Father forgive our trespasses. 

Having thus set before you the duty you owe to your 
fellow-servants and others, I shall now try to show you the 
duty you owe to yourselves. And here let me ask you a 
short plain question : Do you love yourselves ? Now you 
look surprised, as if you thought I asked you some strange 
thing — something out of the way. But let me put it to 
you again — do you really love yourselves ? You will say, 
to be sure we love ourselves — for there is nobody but loves 
himself better than any one else in the world. I heartily 
wish this were true. Then most people would- live in a 
very different manner. But, indeed, there is not a word in 
the world that people more abuse and misunderstand, than 
that one word love. Some persons will call it loving a 
neighbour, when they are making him drunk, and per- 
suading him to go with them into wicked places, to enjoy 
themselves, as they call it. And poor deluded creatures 
will think they love themselves, while they are doing that 
which will give thema little present pleasure, but make them 
miserable for ever. But, pray, mind what I am going t< 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS. 373 

Bay. I will try to make it out plain to your understand- 
ing. If any one truly loves himself, he must needs go to 
heaven. No man ever went, or ever will go to hell, but 
for want of loving himself as he ought to do. You know 
that every one of us has a soul to be saved as well as a 
body to be taken care of. And as the soul is the better 
and more precious part, we ought to love it best. If the 
soul be safe in Paradise, the body is safe enough. For 
although it be laid in the ground to rot, and become meat 
for worms, or turn into dust, yet it ' shall rise again in the 
ist day, and then be received, together with the soul, into 
heaven. But if the soul be lost, the body will perish too, 
and be cast into hell along with it on the day of judgment. 
If, therefore, a man loves his soul so as to take due care 
of it, he loves himself as he ought to do. For in so doing 
he secures eternal happiness both to his soul and body. 
But if he loves his body better than his soul, and runs into 
wickedness to satisfy the desires of that worse part, he 
cannot be said to love himself truly. For by so doing he 
ruins both for ever. 

Suppose a man should break open a house, or rob on the 
high roads, some people might think he loved himself, be- 
cause he could make money and enjoy himself with the 
money. But suppose he should be taken up and con- 
demned to be hanged for what he had done, would not all 
men say, that if he had any true love for himself, he would 
have taken care not to come to so untimely an end ? This 
is exactly the case with sin against God. There is only 
this difference : a robber or murderer may have some chance 
of escaping the hands of men, but no sinner can escape the 
hand of God. Now, if a man has all sorts of pleasure at 
command while he lives in this world, if he denies himself 

32 



374 SERMON XXXI. 

nothing that his heart wishes for, but lives in mirth and 
jollity all his days, yet for want of minding his soul, should, 
at his death, be shut out of heaven ; surely any one who has 
the least common sense, must say, that such a one, after 
all the pains he took to please the body, never had any 
true love for himself. If he had, he would have, taken 
some heed that he might not come to such a dreadful end. 

So that you see the chief duty you owe to yourselves, is 
to take care of your souls. And in order to this — 1st, 
Strive to come to the knowledge of God, and to learn your 
duty to him. This is beyond all other knowledge. And, 
indeed, he that knows just as much as will help to carry 
him to heaven, knows as much as the wisest man upon 
earth need know. If a man had more learning than the 
whole nation besides, and did not know this, he would be a 
fool indeed. Often fall down upon your knees, and beg of 
God to send you the means of instruction and open your 
understandings, that you may choose what is right and 
good. And be sure, when God puts good opportunities in 
your way, that you make a right use of them. Let nothing 
slip you which may be useful to your soul, and help you on 
towards eternal happiness. 

Be very sure to attend public worship. Try and get all 
the instruction you can from those who preach the word. 
If there be any thing you do not understand, ask those 
who know better, to explain it to you. Take every oppor- 
tunity of getting those that can read to you to read the 
word of God and other good books which teach us how to 
v be saved. There is hardly any one who can read, who 
would refuse to do this for you, if you desire to know how 
to be saved. And you must not think that you have too 
little time for religion. You have one day in every seven, 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS. 375 

to attend to this very thing. Besides this, if you really 
desired it, how often could you get some one to read to you 
at night, especially the long winter nights, which so many 
spend in roving about and doing wickedness. I very often 
hear masters and mistresses say, that they would be glad 
to have their servants in the house every night, that they 
might hear God's word read and join in prayers ; but they 
cannot get them to come in without making them, and they 
do not wish to do this. If you truly wish to be saved, you 
must strive to get every help to your souls. The wicked 
spirit which wishes to destroy your souls, is trying to turn 
every thing against you ; but there is one precious promise, 
that God is for you, and greater than all who arc against 
you. If we look up to him for grace, he has promised as 
much as you need. And though after you have done all 
that you can, you shall be unprofitable servants, yet if with 
humble and penitent hearts you throw yourselves upon 
God's mercy through Christ, you shall, at last, receive the 
reward of grace, promised to believers. And this brings 
me to the last consideration ; that is, what kind of a reward 
you may expect from God. 

And upon this head I shall say the less — because it is 
beyond all description; for eye hath not seen, nor ear 
heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man, to con- 
ceive the things which God hath prepared for them that 
love him. If you are desirous of rest, the Holy Spirit of 
God hath declared by a voice from heaven, that those who 
die in the Lord shall rest from their labours. If you desire 
freedom, serve the Lord here, and you shall be the Lord's 
freemen in heaven hereafter. If you desire riches, Christ 
hath provided an inheritance in the kingdom of heaven for 
his faithful servants, which shall last for ever. If you love 



376 SERMON XXXI. 

pleasure: in his presence is fulness of joy, and at his right 
hand are pleasures for evermore. Are not these pleasures 
worth seeking for ? And can you ever admire enough the 
goodness of God, who has set these glories and these en- 
joyments, as much within the reach of the poorest among 
you, as of the greatest prince alive. It is not riches and 
power and learning that can purchase these heavenly 
blessings ; but our blessed Saviour has paid down the price 
for them, and offers to give them freely to any and every 
sinner, rich or poor, who will come to him, and with hum- 
ble and penitent hearts, pray to be forgiven. And now, 
my dear friends, I pray that the good Spirit of God may 
take you into his holy teaching, and may so sanctify your 
natures, while you live in this world, that when you go out 
of it, Christ may say to you, " Come ye blessed children 
of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from 
the foundation of the world." 

CM. 

0, that the Lord would guide my ways, 

To keep his statutes still: 
O, that my God would grant me grace 

To know and do his will. 

0, send thy Spirit down, to write 

Thy law upon my heart: 
Nor let my tongue indulge deceit, 

Nor act the liar's part. 

Conduct my footsteps by thy word, 

And make my heart sincere ; 
Let sin have no dominion, Lord, 

But keep my conscience clear, 



DUTIES OF SERVANTS. 377 

Make me to walk in thy commands ; 

; Tis a delightful road ; 
Nor let my head, nor heart, nor hands 

Offend against my God. 

Questions. — 1. How should you serve your masters? 2. "Why 
should you serve them honestly? 3. What is it to serve them 
honestly? 4. How ought you to feel to your fellow-servants? 

5. Who will have to answer for your bad influence over others ? 

6. What duty do you owe to yourselves ? 7. How are you to show 
that you love yourselves ? 8. What reward is laid up for you in 
heaven ? 



SERMON XXXII. 

THE CHRISTIAN A LIGHT TO THE WORLD. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good 
"works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. — Matt. v. 16. 

Along the ocean there are many rough and dangerous 
places. Ships are often driven by the waves against high 
rocks and dashed to pieces. Sometimes they get lost in the 
darkness of night and the sailors do not know where they 
are, and cannot tell which way to go. To warn them of 
their danger, and to guide them in their way through the 
dark and raging waves many tall houses have been built on 
the sea coast. These are always kept brightly lighted in 
the night season. The lights are never permitted to go out. 
You may see them shining like stars on the ocean in a dark 
night. The sailors look at them and are cheered and 
guided by them in their way. So long as they have them 
in view they feel safe, and urge their ship onward with con- 
fidence. In each of these light houses there is a man 
called a watchman. His business is to watch the lights 
and see that none of them go out. A man once visited one 
of these light houses. While there, he said to the watchman, 
"what if one of your lights should chance to go out?" 

(378) 



THE CHRISTIAN A LIGHT IN THE WORLD. 379 

"That cannot be," said the watchman, "it is impossible." 
He looked at him, as if astonished at the question, and 
said, " I could not be so unfaithful as to let any one of my 
lights go out." Then he pointed him to the ocean, and said, 
" yonder where nothing is to be seen but the dark and 
threatening waves — there are many ships going by to every 
part of the world. If one of my lights were to go out to- 
night, in a month or two, letters would come back, perhaps, 
from the other side of the globe, saying, that on such a 
night, at such an hour, the light of my tower burned dim 
— the watchman slept at his post — or neglected it, and ves- 
sels with their crews were in danger — they knew not how to 
steer, and some were wrecked and lost through my unfaith- 
fulness. "Ah, sir," said he, "sometimes in the darkness 
of the night, and when the storm howls loud, I look out on 
the sea, and feel as if the eye of the whole world was 
looking at my light go out, or burn dim! That can 
never be." 

Here is a poor watchnan confined within the narrow 
walls of a light hpuse. See him spending his life there in 
the drudgery of rubbing his mirrors by day and trimming 
his lamps by night. And as he stands at midnight, all alone, 
with the wild sea roaring around him, he feels that the eyes 
of the world are upon him. He feels himself accountable 
to all the nations of the earth. He shines in his office to 
guide thousands in their way — to warn them of danger, and 
points them to the haven where they may be safe. 

Now, every Christian is like one of these light houses. 
He gives light to the world to warn them of the dangers 
of sin, and guide them in the way to heaven. Jesus Christ 
our Redeemer, is said to be the " true light." He shines in 
the hearts and lives of all his true people. He commands 



380 SERMON XXXII. 

them to let that " light so shine before men that they may 
see their good works and glorify their Father who is in 
heaven." Whenever he converts a soul, by the power of 
his Holy Spirit, he puts this heavenly light into him. He 
tells him to let it shine before the world. " Men do not 
light a candle," said he, " and put it under a bushel, but 
on a candlestick, and it giveth light to all that are in the 
house." So Christians are not to hide their light. They 
are to feel as the watchman did, that their faithfulness will 
be watched — that the eyes of the world are all upon them 
— that their professions of religion will draw the attention 
of men to them, and that many persons will always be 
watching for something against them. For this reason our 
Lord tells us, "let your light so shine before men that 
they may see your good works." All who are Christians 
must study and strive to set a bright pattern of good works. 
We must avoid even " the appearance of evil." We must 
set a good example. For the world is looking at us as their 
light and guide. Thousands of souls have been led astray 
by the bad examples, or the negligence of professing 
Christians. 

Do you want to know why every Christian must let his 
light shine before men ? Our text tells us it is that Grod 
may he glorified. He who lives the most holy life brings the 
greatest honor to God. He sets forth, in the clearest light, 
the beauty and power of religion. He does most to win men 
to Christ. By his life he shows men what religion is. 
When the men of the world look at the Christian and see 
him living up to his profession, they are forced to believe 
in the goodness and power of religion. I went into an 
orchard once, and found an old man gathering apples. I 
said to him, " my uncle, have you any fine apples here VI 



THE CHRISTIAN A LIGHT IN THE WORLD. 381 

"Yes, 6ir," and pointing to a fine looking tree, he said, 
"there are some delicious apples — that is a noble tree.' ' 
Ah, said I; is it more noble than the rest? " 0, yes, sir," 
said he, "it is the best in the orchard." Why do you think 
so ? I asked. He answered, " because it always produces 
the very best fruit." Then, said I, yes, that is true, uncle. 
If it always produces, good fruit it must be a good tree. 
Our Lord said of Christians, a good tree cannot produce evil 
fruit — and by their fruits ye shall know them. It is just 
so with the Christian. If they bring forth, in their lives, 
the fruits of righteousness the men of the world will judge 
them to be trees of righteousness — good Christians. They 
will judge that if their works be good their religion is good. 
Many a man has been led to Christ by the holy lives of 
Christians. Thus has God been glorified by Christians 
letting their light shine. They have broken down the 
hatred of their enemies, they have taught the ignorant 
what religion is, they have shut the mouths of the quarrel- 
some, simply by letting their " light so shine before men 
that they may see their good works." Christians ought 
always to try to "adorn the doctrine of God their Saviour 
in all things." They ought to "show forth the praises of 
him who hath called them out of darkness into his marvel 
lous light." 

Do you want to know how Christians must let their light 
shine ? I will tell you : 

1. They must let it shine in a life of holiness. To be 
holy is to turn away from every thing that is sinful, to hate 
it, and to give yourself up to God's service. The true 
Christian must " come out from the world and be separate, 
and touch not the unclean thing." He must feel that sin is 
his enemy, and must fight against it in whatever shape it 



382 SERMON XXXII. 

may come before him. He must oppose and hinder, in 
every way he can, every wicked word and practice in others. 
They that "bear the vessels of the Lord must be clean." 
" Every one that nameth the name of Christ must depart 
from iniquity." If he is not himself holy he cannot be a 
child of God. This is what you must be, my friends, if 
you would let your light shine. If you run into any sin as 
others do, "your light cannot shine before men." You are 
just like them, and the men of the world cannot know you 
from their own kind. You cannot honor the religion you 
profess. You will disgrace it. You will not lift it up as a 
light for the world to look at ; but you will let it down and 
hide it under a bushel. If you would let your light shine, 
then, you must fly away from all sin. And "whatsoever 
things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever 
things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever 
things are of good report, if there be any virtue, if any 
praise, think of these things and practice them." 

2. Let your light shine by a kind temper and a forgiving 
spirit. 

The wise man tells us that, " a soft answer turneth away 
wrath." It is a hard thing sometimes to keep down the 
temper. We are told that he that " ruleth his own spirit is 
greater than he that taketh a city." There are many great 
warriors in the world. They have fought many great 
battles and taken many great cities, and their names have 
been published to the world as great men. But the Bible 
tells us that he that rules his own spirit is greater than they. 
There is nothing by which a Christian lets his light shine 
more brightly than by showing a kind and Christian spirit. 
The men of the world get angry with each other, and hate 
and curse each other. But our Lord says to his children, 



CHRISTIAN A LIGHT IN THE WORLD. 383 

" love you enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to 
them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully 
use you." Whenever the men of the world see such a 
kind, forgiving temper as this, they cannot help admiring 
it. This was the temper our Lord himself showed. He 
did good to all men. He even died for his enemies. I 
once read a story told by a good old Christian servant of 
himself and his old master. Said he, " I had a young mas- 
ter about my own age. He used to teach me to spell and 
read of nights. It was not long before I began to read a 
little in the New Testament. So we took it up and read 
it verse by verse together. In a short time we both felt that 
we were sinners. We both sought salvation through Jesus 
Christ. Then I began to hold meetings with my fellow- 
servants. I prayed with and exhorted them to holiness. 
But my old master was not religious. He soon found out 
what I was doing. One day he said to me, ' Jack, what 
do you mean by your meetings and preaching. I am afraid 
you will spoil all the negroes on the plantation by them.' 
I said to him, 0, no, I hope not master. I hope they 
will be better servants to you, sir. But my old master was 
a kind and tender hearted man, though he had no love for 
religious people. He did not tell me I should not pray and 
exhort ; yet I saw he did not like me any the better for it. 
I am pretty sure he thought I was a hypocrite. He used 
to talk very harshly to me sometimes. If any thing went 
wrong ; or if any thing was stolen, he would be certain to 
say, * yes, I expect that noisy, praying and preaching Jack 
knows all about it.' But I always tried to do my work well. 
For I knew if old master saw that I was idle and lazy, he 
would begin to curse my religion for it, and charge it all 
upon that. Sometimes he would come into the field -where 



384 SERMON XXXII. 

I was at work, and watch closely all that I was doing. 
Then he would try to find fault, and say, 'Jack, I am 
afraid your religion has done you great harm. I believe I 
will sell the first negro that makes a profession of religion 
under your preaching and praying.' But I went on cheer- 
fully about my work. I always treated my old master with 
great respect, and tried to do the best I could for him. 
Things went on this way for two or three years. And mas- 
ter seemed to be as suspicious of religious people as ever. 

" One evening towards sundown, he came along where I 
was. I saw him looking about and pulling up a weed here 
and there. At last he came up to me, and said, ' Jack, 
sit down, I want to talk to you.' Said he, 'Jack, I want 
you to tell me the truth. I have abused you a great deal 
about your religion. You are a poor slave and have had 
to work very hard. Now, tell me, are you happy under all 
your trials and troubles V Yes, master, said I, I believe I 
am as happy a man as there is on earth. 'Well, Jack,' 
said he, 'I am not happy. You say that your religion 
teaches you to pray for those who treat you badly. Tell 
me, have you been able truly to pray for me V Yes, mas- 
ter, never do I get down on my knees without praying, with 
all my heart, for you. After this we often talked together 
about religion. I saw my master was beginning to think 
more about it. And this made me pray the more for him. 
I saw he began to quit many of his wicked ways. He 
was more serious ; and he was kinder in his talk and manner 
to me. 

"Blessed be God, old master at last found peace in the 
Lamb. Then he came forward and joined the church. I 
shall never forget that day. My soul was filled with love 
to him. Every thing then went on smoothly and peaceably. 



THE CHRISTIAN A LIGHT IN THE WORLD. 38£ 

My old master had prayers in his family every night. And 
every time the bell rung for prayers, Jack was there to 
join in the singing and prayers. When my old master was 
about to die, I quit my work in the field and staid by his 
bed side night and day. The day before he died, he said 
to me, ' Jack, you have been a faithful servant. You must 
take care of your old mistress when I am gone. Go on 
praying and talking to the other servants about religion, 
and then meet me at last in heaven.' I love all Christians, 
but none like I loved my old master.' I hope I shall meet 
him in heaven." 

This is the way to let your light shine by your kind tem- 
per and forgiving spirit. You must be humble, meek, gentle, 
patient in bearing injuries, ready to forgive offences, try- 
ing to overcome evil with good, slow to anger, doing good 
to them that hate and persecute you. You may think that 
in your humble state, as servants, you can do no good. 
But by showing this heavenly temper, your Christian cha- 
racter will shine forth in the brightest colours. The more 
humble your station is, the more brightly will your Chris- 
tian graces shine. The more will those around you admire 
it. The more will your Father in heaven be glorified. 

Do you want to know now where you must let your light 
shine ? The text says, ".Let your light so shine before 
men." 

1. You must let your light shine as members of the 
church. You must have a feeling of kindness and love to 
all the other members of Christ's church. -'By this," says 
St. John, " we know we are his disciples if we love the 
brethren." Christians cannot all be expected to belong 
to the same church, or to hold the same opinions. They 
differ in their forms of worship, and in their modes of 

88 



386 SERMON XXXII. 

baptism. But if they love the Lord Jesus Christ, they are 
brethren. They are seeking the same heaven, and serving 
the same God. They should help each other on. They 
are brothers travelling over the same rough and dangerous 
road to their home in the skies. They should talk kindly 
on the way about their Father's house. If one slips and 
falls, the other should stretch out his hand to help and en- 
courage him on. He should not laugh at him, or abuse 
him, and seem to be glad that he has fallen. The true 
Christian will not slander or backbite his fellow Christian. 
He will not make quarrels among professors. He will 
pray against these things, and do all he can to persuade 
the people of God to live together in peace and love. If 
he does not do this, he cannot let his light shine before 
men. 

2. You must let your light shine as servants. The pro- 
vidence of God has made you servants. Some of us must 
always be servants. The richest and best m»n among us 
must be a servant to some one. Every clerk in a store is, 
in one sense, a servant. Every lawyer is a servant to the 
men who employ him. Every minister of the gospel is a 
servant to his people, and every physician is a servant to 
his patients. All of us have to work, in some way, for our 
living. God has appointed me to my service, and you to 
yours. He commands me to be faithful in my post, and 
he commands you to be faithful in yours. He tells me to 
be kind and just to you. He tells you to be " obedient to 
your own master, and please him well in all things, not 
answering again, not purloining (or stealing,) but showing 
all good fidelity." He says again, "you must perform your 
work, not with eye-service as man pleases, but as the ser- 



THE CHRISTIAN A LIGHT IN THE WORLD. 387 

vants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart ; with 
good will doing service as to the Lord and not to men." 

3. You must let your light shine as husbands and wives. 
You profess to love each other. You have chosen each 
other as companions for life. You have solemnly promised 
before God and man to share each other's troubles, to help 
each other's labours, and to seek each other's happiness. 
You have stood up before God and vowed that you will be 
faithful to one another, that you will forsake all others and 
cleave to one another as long as you live. The world is 
looking at you. The men of the world expect you to be 
kind and good wives and husbands. You must pray 
together, and help each other on to heaven. If you 
quarrel and treat each other unkindly, the world will not 
believe you are religious. The people around you will 
laugh at your professions. They will say, the husband 
who does not love his wife, or the wife who does not love 
her husband, cannot love God. The men of the world 
cannot understand religion, except as they see it shine in 
your life. A good and true Christian will be certain to be 
a kind and faithful wife or husband. 

4. You must let your light shine as fathers and mothers. 
If you have children, God has given them to you to bring 
them up for his service. You must remember that they 
have souls to save. You must tell them about God, and 
teach them to pray. You must pray for them. You must 
keep them from every wicked way, and not let them break 
the Sabbath by wicked conduct. You must teach them 
habits of industry, and try to bring them up in the nurture 
and admonition of the Lord. You must guard them from 
temptation, and see that they are honest, sober, and obe- 
dient. You must never forget that God will, on the last 



388 SERMON XXXII. 

day, require your children at your hands. A poor old 
servant once had a promising little son. He told him 
about God and Jesus Christ. He prayed with and for 
him, and tried to bring him up as a Christian. That little 
boy grew up to be a man. He went to Africa, to spend his 
life in the land of his forefathers. He is there now, and 
one of the greatest and best men in that country. This is 
the light that shines now from the holy life of that good 
old servant. He is long since gone to his grave. But his 
light still shines on a dark and benighted land, and thou- 
sands are blessed by it. 

These are the ways by which all of you may " let your 
light so shine before men, that they may see your good 
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." You 
may think yourselves unable to do much for God. But 
there is not one among you, however poor, or weak, or 
ignorant, who may not let your light shine in a holy life. 
Every one of you may glorify God in this way as much as 
a king on his throne can. You have no power to wield — 
no money to give — no learning to show ; but you can bring 
glory to God by setting a good example. By your good 
example, you may save many a fellow-sinner from eternal 
death. You may strengthen the hands of your fellow 
Christians. You may cheer the hearts of desponding peni- 
tents. You may awaken the hearts even of your careless 
and unbelieving masters and mistresses. Go, then, my 
dear friends, and try to do God's will, in the station where 
he has placed you. " Be burning and shining lights." 
"Be blameless and harmless, the sons of God." Wherever 
you go, hold forth the word of life. Make the world say, 
" See how the light of God's grace shines in him." 0, 
may God help you to " let your light so shine before men, 



THE CHRISTIAN A LIGHT IN THE WORLD. 389 

that they may see your good works, and glorify yom Fa- 
ther which is in heaven." 

CM. 

for a heart to praise my God, 

A heart from sin set free ; 
A heart, made clean by thy rich blood, 

So freely shed for me ! 

A heart resigned, submissive, meek, 

My great Redeemer's throne, — 
Where only Christ is heard to speak, 

Where Jesus reigns alone. 

An humble, lowly, contrite Jieart, 

Believing, true, and clean ; 
Which neither life nor death can part 

From him that dwells within. 

A heart in every thought renewed, 

And full of love divine ; 
Perfect, and right, and pure, an ' f^od, 

A copy, Lord, of thine. 



83* 



SERMON XXXIII. 

THE GAIN OF A LOST SOUL. 

BY THE REV. CHAELES E. AMBLER. 

What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and 
lose his own soul ? or what shall a man give in exchange for his 
soul?— Mark viii. 36, 37. 

When a man is about to make a bargain, he ought to 
consider, whether what he is to get is worth what he has 
to give for it. A foolish and imprudent man, when he 
wants any thing, will have it, no matter what it costs him, 
and if he can get it in no other way, will often give far 
more than it is worth for it. This is the difference between 
a wise and a foolish man in the affairs of this world ; one 
considers before-hand whether he will be better or worse 
off by his bargain, the other goes on without considering 
what will come afterwards ; and when the bargain is made, 
he begins to be sorry that he did not think before he acted. 
The wise man, Solomon, says, "A prudent man foreseeth 
the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on, and 
are punished." Every day we see men suffering because 
they do not consider before they act. If you were to go 
to a jail or a penitentiary, where men suffer for their 
crimes and wrong-doings, most of those who are shut in 
these dismal places would tell you, that they would not be 
(390) 



THE GAIN OF A LOST SOUL. 391 

there now, if they had considered before they did what 
had caused them to be put there. Ask a man who is there 
for murder, if he considered before he shed the blood of 
his brother, and he will tell you, no ; I did it in a passion, 
before I thought, and when I had done it, I would have 
given worlds to take it back, but it was too late. 

The robber will tell you the same. If he had only con- 
sidered beforehand, and thought of all that was to follow, 
he would have acted very differently. Leave the prison 
and go out into the world, and question the most miserable 
men you see, and they will nearly all tell you, if they speak 
the truth, that they came to their wretchedness by follow- 
ing their wishes, without considering what was to come 
afterwards. If the idle man had known what poverty and 
starvation he was bringing on himself, he would have 
worked. If the drunkard had perceived beforehand the 
woes, the sorrows, the rags, the redness of eyes, the wretch- 
edness of his family, which the bottle causes, he would not 
have looked upon the wine when it was red, he would 
not have sought the strong drink. Thus you see how all 
kinds of misery come upon men, even in this world, by 
their not considering, by their not calculating the conse- 
quences. And so it is that poor sinners plunge into the 
torments of hell, by not considering beforehand, and turn- 
ing from their evil ways. 

Now, it is to prevent you from acting in this way, that 
our Saviour asks you this question, " what shall it profit a 
man, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" 
He speaks to you as to one who is about to make a bargain, 
and asks you to consider, if what you will get by gaining 
the world, will pay you for what you give by losing your 
soul. This is a bargain worth considering, indeed. It is a 



392 SERMON XXXIII. 



bargain which is to decide how, and where you will spenc 
eternity. If you will be more profited by gaining the world 
and losing your soul, than by giving up sin and saving your 
soul, then go on in your impenitence and sin, you can afford 
to lose your soul. But first consider well this question, 
what will it profit, if you gain the world, and lose your 
soul? 

1. Consider, first, what profit you will get in this life, 
by seeking to gain the world. When men set their minds 
upon gaining the world, though they may not say so, in so 
many words, they as good as give up all prospect of gain- 
ing any thing in the world to come. If, then, any profit is 
to be had from gaining the world, it must be found in the 
enjoyments which they hope to reap from the things of this 
life. How little most men are profited by these, can easily 
be seen. 1. And the first thing which strikes us, when we 
consider this matter, is, how seldom it is, that men who are 
trying to gain the world, actually get what they seek for. 

When our Saviour spoke of a man's gaining the whole 
world, he spoke of a thing that never happened, and never 
can happen. Few men gain the little part of it that they 
aim to have. How many, for instance, seek to be rich, yet 
how few rich men are there, by comparison with the poor 
ones ; how many would like to be great and powerful, yet 
how few great men are there, when you compare them with 
the multitude who are not great. How many would like 
to live lives given up to nothing but pleasure and enjoy- 
ment, yet how few are able to live such lives. If now, so 
many who wish to gain these different things, have to go 
without them, must there not be a great deal of sorrow 
and disappointment among those who are trying to gain the 
world ? Yes, no doubt, there is more of misery and grief 



: 



THE GAIN OF A LOST SOUL. 393 

to the disappointed seekers of the world, than there is of 
joy and happiness to the few who get what they seek. 

2. But even if men were not so often disappointed in 
what they seek, if they usually obtained all they wish to 
have, if they could gain the whole world, it would profit 
them but little, it could not satisfy them. Men think that 
if they can only have what they want of the world, they 
must be happy ; but it is a mistake. 

Not long ago, one of the richest men the world ever saw 
died in England, His name was Rothschild. When he 
was very young, the thought came into his mind, that of 
all things he would like to be rich, and he set to work and 
laid his plans to obtain this object. He gave up all his life 
to making money. He was not disappointed; but suc- 
ceeded even better than he hoped to do. Money flowed in 
to him in streams. He had more millions than some, who 
are counted rich men, have thousands. He had around him 
every comfort and every luxury which money could buy. 
The rich, the noble, and the great were glad to call them- 
selves his friends, and even the kings of the earth paid him 
great respect, and honoured him with their company. Now, 
if gaining the world, can make a man happy, you will say 
Rothschild ought to have been perfectly happy. But let 
us see how it was. He had one of his great and noble 
friends to dine with him one day. Every thing was grand 
and magnificent. The house was like the palace of a king. 
The floors were covered with the richest carpets. The 
rooms were full of the most beautiful and costly furniture. 
Well dressed and obedient servants moved about, ready to 
obey every order. The table was spread with every thing 
to eat and drink, which was delicate and delicious. Nothing 
could be thought of to add to the bodily comfort and 



394 SERMON XXXIII. 

enjoyment of man, which was not there. And yet the mas- 
ter of all this was not happy, but wretched. Just as he was 
about to sit down to his splendid feast, he said to his friend, 
" there- is little enjoyment for me in this world. I have 
just got a letter, telling me, that I must send a large sum 
of money to such a place, by such a time, or I will be 
killed." 

How could the poor man be happy, when all his money, 
which he trusted, could not protect his life? The poor 
beggar, without a cent in his pocket, was in no danger of 
being killed; but Rothschild, with all his money, was in 
danger of being shot every time he went out of his house. 
Many a man who has every thing that money can give, is 
as wretched as this man, though it is such a common thing 
to think that all man wants to make him happy is money. 

A man may gain all riches, and yet if God has not given 
him health, he cannot enjoy any of it. Often the rich man 
whose table groans with the weight of the good things of 
the world piled on it, has no appetite for any thing, but 
drags away his weak and diseased body from the untasted 
food, the very sight of which is hateful to him. The poor 
labourer enjoys his dry crust more than such a man does 
his rich fare. The very dogs which eat the crumbs that 
fall from his table, enjoy his riches more than he. This 
ought to teach the poor of this world to be contented, and 
if they are satisfied with their little, they are better off than 
the rich and great, who cannot be satisfied with their much. 
A poor man who has nothing but food and raiment, may 
be content, and another man who has all the world, may be 
discontented and miserable. 

There was once a great king by the name of Alexander. 
He put himself at the head of a great army, and went about 



THE GAIN OF A LOST SOUL. 395 

conquering the countries of the world, until he got them all 
under him. He conquered the whole world. All the nations 
of the earth submitted to him, and all kings called him their 
master, and brought presents to him. He had no body in 
the wide world to cross his will ; no one dared to say no to 
him, when he wanted any thing. Now, if gaining the world 
can make a man happy, ought not he to have been happy ? 
Yet we are told that he came one day to one of his own 
servants, weeping. And what could this great man be weep- 
ing for ? Why it was because there was not another world 
for him to conquer. He had gained the whole world, but 
that did not profit enough to keep him from weeping. And 
do you think if you would gain the world it would make you 
happy ? No, you, too, would want another world, and would 
cry because you cannot have it. And if riches and power 
cannot satisfy a man, neither can pleasure profit him much. 
Pleasure never fills the pleasure seeker. The lovers of plea- 
sure think themselves happy for a little while, but there is 
nothing solid in their joy. They always have an uncomfort- 
able feeling that it is slipping away, and an impatient look- 
ing out for something else. Solomon tried seeking pleasure, 
and he said, all is vanity and vexation of spirit. When the 
short-lived pleasure is gone, the man feels that he has been 
following a shadow. He held out his hand for fruit, and 
found nothing in it when he closed it. He sees that he had 
been feeding on ashes, when his ungodly pleasures are gone. 
3. I have been trying to show how little power the things 
of the world which men desire most, have to make you 
happy, and therefore, how little they can profit you. But 
suppose you could not only have all you desire in the world, 
but that it could make you perfectly happy, still it would 
profit you little. If you had all of Rothschild's money, and 



396 SERMON XXXIII. 

all of Alexander's power and greatness, and could enjoy all 
of King Solomon's pleasures, if you could have the whole 
world and yet lose your soul, it would profit you nothing. 
The richest, the greatest, and the happiest of men all alike 
have to die. The longest life is very, very short compared 
with eternity. You may have all riches, and honour, and 
pleasure around you to-day, but let a few to-morrows 
come and go, and they are all gone, never to come back, 
"iou spend your life here, as a tale that is told. It is like 
a mist that rises, and appeareth for a while, and then van- 
ishes away. Not long ago, General Tatloe was the head 
of this great country. He lived in a splendid house, and 
was surrounded by all the great men of the land, and him- 
self was the greatest of all. Now he is in his grave, and 
the world profits him no more than it does the poorest of his 
servants, who has died. Let it come soon, or come late, 
every thing in this world has an end. What, then, will it 
profit you, if you gain it all, and lose your own soul ? If 
those persons who have been so rich, and so great, and so 
full of pleasure, have got so little profit by it, if it has lasted 
them so short a^ time, what will the little you can gain of 
the things of the world profit you? Surely little, very 
little. 

II. But what do you think of your bargain, when God 
declares, that to gain that little, you have to lose your un 
dying soul? Is not this too high a price to pay for what 
you will get by continuing in sin? 

1. Remember your soul is to live for ever. And if yo 
lose that, you lose every thing for ever. In the worl 
where you will soon be found, you, if you lose your soul 
will have nothing to comfort you. In vain will you look 
around for the things you now delight in. You will want 



it 

: 



THE GAIN OF A LOST SOUL. 397 

there, but can get nothing you will want ; you will desire, 
but have nothing desired ; you will long, but there will be 
no prospect of getting what you long after. Not even hope 
will be left. There will be nothing but the gloomy night 
of sorrow, with no coming morning to bring its joys. 0, 
that we could believe that there is no such misery as this, 
for the lost soul. But if God's word is true, the loss of 
the soul is far more terrible than any thing I have said, or 
can say. There is a worm that never dies, there is a fire 
that never shall be quenched. The wicked shall lift up their 
eyes in hell, being in torment. There will be a time when 
they had rather have a drop of water than the whole world, 
but they cannot have it. And terrible as it is, the misery 
of that place is eternal. Let the lost soul sink once into the 
lake that burns with fire and brimstone, and it can never 
rise again , 0, what can pay a man for losing his soul ? 
The world, the whole world could not pay him for one hour 
of the misery of hell, and yet, foolish creature that he is, to 
gain the world he endures this misery for ever. 0, will you 
not consider before you agree to make such a bargain as this ? 
III. There is a time coming when you will see the truth 
of all this, if you do not now. Look at it, then, as you 
will look at it when you have done with this world, and are 
just treading upon the edge of the eternal world. When 
you have had all that you have been labouring for in the 
world ; when your gains have been laid up ; your pleasures 
enjoyed ; when your family and friends have stood around 
you, and bid you farewell ; see how much all you have had 
profits you. There it is, look at it, and say what it is worth. 
What does it profit if your soul is lost. Your days will 
then be numbered. The time will have come for you to 
rise and go and enter upon eternity. No holding back will 

34 



398 SERMON XXXIII. 

do any good. You need not cry, "I am not ready, my 
soul is lost, I cannot enter upon eternity now." It will be 
too late. You chose to gain the world, and now that your 
soul is lost, what does it profit you ? 0, are you willing to 
choose the world and let your soul be lost ? Are you willing 
to make a bargain that will profit you no more than this ? 

IV. But can you be saved ? Is it possible to prevent 
your soul from being lost ? Yes, sinner, blessed be God, 
he so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, 
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have 
everlasting life. You are a sinner in the sight of God, and 
therefore lost ; but Jesus Christ died to save sinners, and 
if you believe on him God will save you most freely. If you 
wish to know whether God is in earnest when he tells you 
he is willing to save your soul, go to the cross of Jesus 
Christ — see the agony which God manifest in the flesh en- 
dured for you, when he bore your sins in his own body on 
the tree. Why was God willing that the just should suffer 
for the unjust ? Why did Jesus shed his blood ? It was 
all that your soul might be reconciled to God through his 
death — might be washed in his blood and saved for ever. 
If you are bought with such a price, ought you not to be 
in earnest about your salvation ? If God has taken such 
pains to save you, as to send his Son to die for you, how 
will you escape if you neglect so great a salvation ? Awake 
thou that sleepest, arise and call upon Christ and he will 
give thee light. If you wish to be saved, you must not 
sleep as do others, but strive to enter in at the straight gate. 
Ask and ye shall receive, seek and ye shall find, knock and 
it shall be opened unto you. Be in earnest, for what shall 
it profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your own 
soul? 



THE GAIN OF A LOST SOUL. 399 

I have only a few words to speak to you, my friends, on 
the last part of the text, which asks, u what shall a man 
give in exchange for his soul?" 

A man may lose many things in this world and get them 
back again. He may lose money out of his pocket and find 
it himself, or some one find it for him. He may, by laziness 
and mismangement, lose his estate, and by industry and 
good management get it back, or make another. By impru- 
dence or sin, he may lose his health, and by care and the 
help of medicine he may get well again. He may be 
seized and carried into a foreign land, and sold to some 
hard service, and have to work in chains ; but some kind 
and rich friends may come and pay a great price for him, 
and set him free again. All these things may be, and yet 
there are some things even in this world, which once done, 
can never be undone. There are some sins of our youth 
which follow us all our days upon earth, tormenting us with 
pain. And all sins unrepented follow us into eternity. 
There is no repentance in the grave. As the tree falls so 
it lies on earth. As the sinner enters on eternity, so he 
goes on for ever. No man can recover his lost soul. Nor 
can any friend or brother give a ransom for it. The worm 
which preys upon it never dies — the fire which burns it can 
never be quenched. We have a story of a poor soul who 
was cast into the burning lake, and after some thousands 
of years, it raises its head above the surface, and looking 
up to heaven, cried out, "Lord, how long ?" A voice comes 
down, saying, "eternity." It sinks down in the burning 
waves, and spends some thousands of years more in tor- 
ments, — then rises up, and again cries, " Lord, how long ?" 
The same voice from above, says, " eternity." The wretched, 
lost one sinks down, and never rises again. 



400 SERMON XXXIII. 

My dear friends, now, there is a ransom for your souls. 
The ransom has actually been paid down. It was a great 
price that was paid for your souls. But you must now 
accept the salvation that is purchased and offered to you. 
If you reject it now, it is lost for ever. Christ's death has 
no power to save one soul that has reached the place of 
the damned. It will only make their damnation more dread- 
ful. I beseech you, therefore, to receive it now, with peni- 
tent and believing hearts, and show that you have received 
it, by obedient lives, as you hope to reach that heaven 
from which all the devils of hell can no more pluck you, 
than all the angels of heaven could take you out of hell, if 
you live and die impenitent, and unbelieving, and wicked. 

CM. 

How short and hasty is our life ! 

How vast our souls' affairs ! 
Yet senseless mortals vainly strive 

To lavish out their years. 

Our days run thoughtlessly along, 

Without a moment's stay , 
Just like a story or a song, 

We pass our lives away. 

God from on high invites us home, 

But we march heedless on, 
And ever hastening to the tomb, 

Stoop downward as we run. 

How we deserve the deepest hell, 

That slight the joys above ! 
What chains of vengeance should we feel, 

That break such cords of love ! 

Draw us, God, with sovereign grace, 

And lift our thoughts on high, 
That we may end this mortal race, 
And see salvation nigh. 



SERMON XXXIV, 

THOSE WHO ARE CONFIRMED SHOULD GIVE 
UP ALL WORLDINESS. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 
" Be not conformed to this world." — Rom xii. 2. 

Many persons think that confirmation is a mere form. 
Many are actually confirmed and then go away, and, in a 
few months act as if they were not bound by any promises 
they made to a holier life than they lived before. But 
these persons have wrong notions about confirmation. I 
will try and tell, in the simplest way I can, what it is. 

A sprightly servant girl, belonging to one of the ladies 
of the Episcopal church, while sitting all alone with her in 
the chamber sewing, said to her, "mistress, was'nt Miss 
Eliza B. confirmed when the bishop was here, about three 
months ago ? " Yes, I believe she was," said the mistress. 
" Why do you wish to know ? " " Why, madam, I have heard 
the ladies talk so much about confirmation, and so many of 
them talked as if they wanted to be confirmed, that I 
thought I would take the first chance to ask you what con- 
firmation means, and how people ought to act who have 
been confirmed." " Well, my girl, I will take pleasure in 
telling you all I know about it. Tell me what has been your 

34* (401) 



402 SERMON XXXIV. 

idea about confirmation ? When I have heard what you 
think it to be I can tell you better what it is." " Well, 
madam, you know I cannot read, and have very little 
chance of hearing the minister explain it, as he never 
preaches about confirmation except when the bishop is 
coming, and then I can't understand him very well. And, 
taking all things into consideration, I reckon my notions 
about it are all wrong. But I always thought, madam, 
that confirmation was professing religion and joining the 
church." " In that, my girl, you are right. You know that 
when our children are a few months old we take them to 
the church to be baptized by the minister. This is what 
we did with you when you were a little child ; because we 
think it right to have our little servants baptized as well as 
our own children. When any one is baptized, thus in 
infancy, the father and mother, or the master or mistress, 
or some other Christian friend, promises in the name of the 
child, before the minister and the congregation, to renounce 
or put away the devil and all his works, with all the pomps 
and vanities of this wicked world, so that they will not fol- 
low nor be led by them. The child cannot make this pro- 
mise, and these persons come forward and stand as its 
security, and promise in its name. Suppose one of our 
rich neighbors was about to die, and should send for your 
master to make his will. Suppose he should say to your 
master, * I want to give a farm to your little son William ; but 
I cannot give it without having some assurance that he will 
be a sober and honest man. But he is too young to under- 
stand and to make such a promise.' Now, what would your 
master do in such a case? He would say to him, ' I will 
be my child's security ; I will promise, in his name, that he 
will be sober and honest. When he gets eld enough to 



THE CONFIRMED. 403 

understand I will tell him all about it. If then, he thinks 
proper, he may own that I was right in making this pro- 
mise ; he may confess himself bound by it to live soberly 
and honestly. In this way he may secure his title to the 
property; he may ratify and confirm the same, and ac- 
knowledge himself bound to do as I promised he should. 
If not, he must renounce or give it up, and the property 
must go to some one else.' 

" Now, this is just like the promises in baptism. God 
promises our children the kingdom of heaven if they will 
renounce the devil and the world, and love and serve him 
all the days of their life. But they are too young to make 
the promise. We go forward and promise in their name. 
When they come of age to take it upon themselves, they 
renew these promises, and acknowledge themselves bound 
to believe and to do as we promised for them. Then, if 
they love and serve God to their life's end, he will give 
them a title to the kingdom of heaven and everlasting life. 
If they will not do this, our promises for them go for 
nothing. 

" You recollect that when Miss Eliza B. was confirmed, 
the bishop asked her if she would renew or take upon her- 
self the solemn vow or profession which was made in her 
name in baptism ; whether she could ratify and confirm the 
same and acknowledge herself bound to believe and to do 
as her parents or those who had promised for her in bap- 
tism, said she would ? She answered, ' I do.' That is, * I 
do own that I am bound to believe and to do as they pro- 
mised.' This is what we call confirmation. We call it so 
because we confirm the promises that were made in our 
name at baptism. The other day your master sent off for 
the overseer to hire a man to work in the harvest. When 



404 SERMON XXXIV. 

he came back lie said he had bargained with one for a dol- 
lar a day. Your master was satisfied with the bargain, and 
said he would make it his own. In this way he confirmed 
that bargain. The other day you sent your little sister to 
the store to buy a pair of shoes for you. She brought you 
a pair for which she said she had given seventy-five cents. 
You told her that you were satisfied with the bargain, and 
felt yourself bound by it to pay for the shoes. In this way 
you confirmed what she did. Now, this is something like 
what Miss Eliza B. did when the bishop was here. When 
she was a little child, her parents bargained with God, in her 
name, to renounce the devil and all his works, and the pomps 
and vanities of this wicked world ; to keep God's holy will 
and commandments, and to walk in the same all the days 
of her life. When the bishop was here, she went forward, 
in the church, and owned, before all the people, that the 
bargain was a good one. She took it upon herself. She 
confirmed that bargain. Then the bishop laid his hands on 
her head, and prayed that she might continue to be God's 
faithful child unto her life's end. He laid his hands on her 
head, because the Bible tells us, that the holy apostles of 
old used to lay their hands, in this way, on the heads of 
those who were converted, and made a profession of the 
name of Christ." 

"Well, mistress," said this servant girl, "all this seems 
very plain to me. Yet I don't know whether I understand 
what is meant by the pomps and vanities of the world." 
"Why, my girl, that is very plain. I thought surely you 
knew what renouncing the pomps and vanities of the 
world means." "Well, mistress, I thought it meant giving 
up the love of worldly pleasure, such as so much fine, ex- 
travagant dressing, going to balls and dancing parties, and 



THE CONFIRMED. 405 

taking so much pleasure in the company of worldly and 
fashionable people. That has always been my notion of it. 
But I have been thinking that I must be mistaken in 
this." "Why do you think you are mistaken ?" asked the 
mistress. " You know I was sent for to wait on the ladies at 
the party Mr. Brown gave last week. It was a very gay 
dancing party. I can't tell you how surprised I was to see 
Miss Eliza up on the floor dancing, just as gay as the 
others who were not members of the church. I could not 
help thinking of the time when she was confirmed, and of 
the solemn promises she made. I wondered how she could 
do so. Then, I said to myself, Miss Eliza is a well 
educated young lady. She can read the Bible and knows 
a great deal more than I do. So I thought I must be mis- 
taken in my notions about the pomps and vanities of the 
world. I thought they could not mean worldly amusements. 
If they did, I thought Miss Eliza would not be taking so 
much pleasure in them. I could not think that when she 
made these promises, she did not intend to keep them. I 
could not think she did not know what she was doing. I 
could not think that she had so soon changed her mind, and 
then, too, it was only the week before that I saw her go up 
to the communion. So I did not know what to make of it, 
and then, I thought to myself, I must be mistaken about 
the pomps and vanities of the world. And she was 
not the only one either. There were two or three other 
young ladies and gentlemen, all dancing, just as gay as 
any of them. Now, ma'am, will you please tell me whether 
I am right or wrong in my notions about pomps and vani- 
ties V " Well, my girl, many persons have a very low idea 
of what is required of them in confirmation. They think 
it is nothing more than the mere form of joining the church, 



406 SERMON XXXIV. 

and telling the world that they have had some serious 
thoughts about religion." " Yes, ma'am ; but just think of the 
promises they make in confirmation. Will you please tell me 
how they get over them? Did'nt Miss Eliza promise 
solemnly to give up the world. She knows what that 
means, and then the bishop's address to her was so plain and 
solemn. He told her, that she must not be conformed to the 
world, and that her conduct would be watched very closely 
by the world, and what unkind things the people of the 
world would say about the church and religion, if she 
should fall back. I can never forget how plain and earnest 
he was in all he said to her, and how she wept, and kneeled 
down and prayed, when she went back to her seat. No 
body could have made me believe then, that she would 
so soon be found dancing and doing just like other people." 
"I am glad, my girl," said the mistress, a to find that you 
know so well what a Christian ought be. I wish, when the 
bishop comes round again, you would be confirmed, and set 
all these young people a good example. For though you 
are but a servant, confirmation was intended for you as 
much as for them. And if you will set a holy example, 
you may do much good in the name of your heavenly Mas- 
ter." " Yes, ma'am ; but I am not fit to make a profession 
of religion. I wish I was. But when I hear so many 
people talking about professing Christians loving the world 
so much, it makes me think that I never will join the 
church, until I am ready to give up the world and serve 
God with all my heart. I think when one promises so 
solemnly before God to do a thing, they ought to do it." 

" I want to tell you of a talk I heard that night between 
two young men, who were standing near the window, where 
Mrs. Miller's Lucy and I were looking in. Miss Sally 



THE CONFIRMED. 407 

Smith was there too. Is not she a member of the church ? 
Yes, I believe she is. Did she dance ? No, madam, not at 
first. But I was going on to tell you what I heard these 
two young gentlemen say. One of them said to the other, 
Greorge, just look at those members of the church there, I 
do beleive there is one from every church, here dancing. 
Not long ago, those two young ladies were confirmed, and 
they solemnly promised to renounce the pomps and vanities 
of this wicked world. See what fashionable and costly 
dresses they have on. They did not look so the day they 
were confirmed. But here they are now, dancing just like 
the rest of us, just as much in love with the world as we 
are. Look over yonder at that other set, see that young 
man standing in the floor there, with a young lady ; he 
was converted about a year ago, and is a member of the 
Methodist church ; and that young man who is just leading 
a lady into the floor, there, he is a Presbyterian. Then he 
said, now look over yonder at Miss Sally Smith. I have 
heard her say, often, that she thought it a great sin for 
professing Christians to dance. I wonder if she thinks that 
the whole sin of dancing is in crossing the feet ? Yet there 
she sits, with her eyes stretched as if she wanted to see 
every thing that is going on, her very heart is dancing now, 
and she is enjoying it as much as any of us. Next commu- 
nion day, all these dancing Christians will go up to the Lord's 
table, and pretend to be just as good as they were the day 
they joined the church. I'll bet you what you dare, said 
the other, I can get her out on the floor in ten minutes, 
dancing just like the rest of them. I will try it any how, 
just for the fun of the thing. 0, no, said the other, this is 
too bad, there are too many Christians on the floor now. 
Well, but if she comes here to compromise her religion in 






408 SERMON XXXIV. 

this way, she must expect us to make fun of it. Every one 
seemed to know that Miss Sally thought dancing a great 
sin, and no one had asked her yet to dance. But this 
young man walked right across the floor to where she was. 
We all watched to see what he would do. They talked to- 
gether for a little while, and now and then, we saw her 
shake her head. But presently he took her by the hand, 
and they walked out on the floor together ; then they all 
moved off in the dance, and as they passed along, I saw this 
young man looking at his friend, and smiling as if he had 
done great wonders. When the set was over, he came back 
to where he was, and said, did I not tell you so ? These 
members of the church are just like the rest of us, they love 
the world just as much as we do." 

" You see, then, my girl, said the mistress, how wrong it is 
for those who belong to the church, to be conformed to the 
world. Our Saviour has commanded us to be renewed in 
the spirit of our minds, and to let our light so shine before 
men, that they may see our good works, and glorify our * 
Father who is in heaven. I hope you will soon be ready 
to renew, in your own name, the promises that were made 
for you in baptism. And when you are confirmed, I hope 
you will set the example of a godly and Christian life, and 
prove by your conduct that you have given your whole 
heart and life to the service of God." "I hope I shall, 
mistress ; but I am too ignorant. Even if I was religious, 
I do not know enough about the Bible and prayer book yet 
to be confirmed." "Yes, my girl, you do. It does not 
require any book learning to make you fit to be confirmed. 
If your heart is truly given to God, that is enough. The 
bishop of this diocese was once about to confirm two per- 
sons in one of the old churches. Before the candidates 



THE CONFIRMED. 409 

were called up, lie spoke of the suitableness of our services 
for the poor and ignorant, because he had been told that 
one of the persons to be confirmed was a servant. He told 
them, how those who could not read might, by coming regu- 
larly to church, and paying attention, become acquainted 
with the most important parts of God's word; and how the 
constant use of the same prayers helped those who heard 
them to lay up, in their memories, the best expressions for 
prayer in their families, or in their private exercises. Thus 
he said, our church was the poor man's church, rather than 
the rich man's. For the rich can read the Bible for them- 
selves, and use any of the books of prayer which are writ- 
ten. After thus speaking, he called for those who were to 
be confirmed, and saw that three instead of two were 
coming. He turned to the minister, and asked in a whis- 
per, if he wished them all to be confirmed. The minister 
told him, that such was his desire. He then administered 
the rite to all of them. He afterwards learned from the 
minister, that the third person was a poor, pious young 
woman, who could not read. She said she had long wished 
to join the Episcopal church, but had been told that none 
would be allowed to do so, unless they could read. When 
she heard what the bishop said on the subject, she was en- 
couraged to come forward and offer herself as a candidate 
for confirmation. And most cordially was she received. 

" But, my girl, there are many other sins worse than danc- 
ing. Dancing is a very fashionable and worldly pleasure. 
No one who professes the name of Christ, ought ever to en- 
gage in it. All who are confirmed, solemnly promise then 
that they will renounce the world, and all its vain pleasures 
and pomps. But you must remember that there is a higher 
degree of holiness than all this to be attained. We must 

35 



410 SERMON XXXIV. 

not only not dance. "We are commanded to be holy, as 
God is holy. Every kind of sin must be renounced. All 
the lusts of the flesh must be kept down. Pride, and envy, 
and hatred, and evil speaking, and all impurity of thought 
and conduct, must be put far away from you. Religion 
must be the chief concern of all those who give themselves 
to God. This is a time when the religion of many of the 
members of the church sets too loosely on them. I hope 
the day is not distant when the whole church of God will 
wake up to the importance of true religion of heart and 
life ; and when all Christians will show by their daily life, 
that they are not conformed to this world, but are trans- 
formed by the renewing of their mind unto the likeness of 
Christ's holiness. ,, 

CM. 

Religion is the chief concern 
Of mortals here below ; 
- May I its great importance learn, 
Its sovereign virtue know. 

Religion should our thoughts engage 

Amidst our youthful bloom ; 
'Twill fit us for declining age, 

Or for an early tomb. 

0, may my heart, by grace renewed, 

Be my Receemer's throne ; 
And be my stubborn will subdued, 

His government to own. 

Let deep repentance, faith, and love, 

Be joined with Godly fear ; 
And all my conversation prove 

My heart to be •sincere. 






SEKMON XXXIV. 411 

Questions. — 1. Is confirmation a mere form ? 2. What is it? 3. 
Why do we call it confirmatian ? 4. Did the holy apostles of old con- 
firm believers ? 5. Ought those who are confirmed to love the world? 
6. Do the people of the world think any better of those professors 
who dance ? 7. What do they generally think of them ? 8. Do such 
professors do any good to the church? 9. What sort of people ought 
all Christians to be * 






SERMON XXX^V. 

THE REFRESHING GRACE OF THE GOSPEL. 

BY THE REV. WM. N. PENDLETON. 



As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far 
country. — Pro v. xxv. 25. 

Across a dry and barren desert a traveller is going. The 
sun shines upon him with great heat. The ground is parched 
beneath his feet. There is nothing green or flourishing 
around him. For many hours he has been walking on his 
dreary way, without rest or refreshment. Tired and thirsty 
he is ready to faint. There is no moisture on his lips, his 
very tongue is getting stiff with dryness. And without 
early relief he must fail, and sink down in despair — to die. 
But far ahead something appears giving promise of relief. 
A few green trees are seen. Surely water must be there. 
That spot he will reach. In this hope he toils on. And now, 
in a shady spot, he beholds the spring, from which, through 
the green grass, water is flowing clear and beautiful. 

He stoops and drinks. It is cool, refreshing, delicious ! 
And now satisfied and strengthened, he can go rejoicing, 
on his way. How sweet are u cold waters to a thirsty 
soul !" 

And just so — pleasant and encouraging, is "good news 
(412) 









THE REFRESHING GRACE OP THE GOSPEL. 413 

from a far country." It is like "cold waters to a thirsty- 
soul." Suppose one of you far away from your friends 
and your home ; far from all that you have known and 
loved, how glad would it make your hearts to get good 
news from home ! How delightful would you find it to 
receive from your friends tidings of good things ! 

And let me tell you, my friends, we are all strangers 
and pilgrims on earth. We are far away from home, far 
from our Father's house — and he has, in the gospel of his 
Son, sent us from that far home. 0, what good news ! 
We are travelling through a world which sin has made a 
wilderness full of danger and suffering — and God has 
prepared for us the pure fountain of the water of life, 
that the thirsty soul may drink freely even unto salvation. 

In the gospel of Christ you have, then, " good news 
from a far country," and in the blessings of grace, "cold 
waters for the thirsty soul." And about these there is good 
instruction in the text. " As cold waters to a thirsty soul, 
so is good news from a far country." Let us, therefore, 
try to learn these two things, so that we may profit by 
them, viz. 

I. The gospel is, indeed, " good news from a far 
country." 

II. And is "like cold waters to a thirsty soul." 
I. " Good news from afar country !" 

How far the sinful heart is gone from God, you are 
here reminded, my friends; and how far God hides 
himself from sinful men ! How far sin separates the soul 
from peace ; and how far the sinner is from a home in 
heaven ! 

With an evil heart of unbelief the sinner wanders far 
from God, like the prodigal son, who went away from his 

35* 



414 SEKMON XXXV. 

father's house, and rained himself by sinful folly. And 
God, though he was at first nigh to man, when he stood 
among the lower creatures, good as he was made, in the 
image of God, has now removed afar off, from the guilty 
and corrupt ; and has become a God that hideth himself in 
majesty not to be approached. (Isaiah xlv. 15.) And in 
this state of sin, away from God, we cannot be at home. 
We are all, while we live on earth, " strangers and pil- 
grims," travelling to another country: to a state of being 
widely different from this, and so, a far country. Medi- 
tate on these things, my friends, when you hear the gospel, 
as "good news from a far country." 

How very far is God from the thoughts and experience 
of sinful men ! How/ar are their hearts estranged from 
him ! How far has he removed from their view and their 
knowledge ! 

And then, how utterly strange and unknown to man 
in his natural condition is the world to which he is going ; 
how full is it of mystery and awe, as a distant land, of 
untried wonders ! 

A Holy God ! In his personal majesty, how far is the 
feeling of his presence from our common experience. And 
yet, he is ever looking upon you, my friends ; and before 
long, every one of you must stand in his presence to give 
account for the deeds done in the body. 

Heaven ! the habitation of his holiness ; the home of the 
redeemed, is it not far from this sinful earth? And 
are you not far from being fit for that holy place ? 

Hell ! the place of banishment from God ; the prison of 
the condemned, where they must always suffer under God's 
eternal wrath ; 0, can it be near to the homes where now 
you live in such security ? 



THE REFRESHING GRACE OF THE GOSPEL. 415 

My friends, though in some respects the country of 
which we have tidings in the gospel is very nigh to us, in 
other respects it is a country afar off. And it is a coun- 
try, which far off as it is, is more important to us than all 
the world besides. For, " what shall it profit a man if he 
gain the whole world and lose his own soul ? and what shall 
a man give in exchange for his soul ?" 

And what good news, is brought to us from that far 
country, in the tidings of the gospel ! 

God tells us of the great covenant of grace ! God's 
eternal Son became a man ; took upon himself the suffer- 
ings which God's law had pronounced against sin; and ran- 
somed from condemnation, all of sinful men, who, with 
sincere hearts, receive him, trust him, and serve him, as 
their Lord and Saviour. Jesus Christ declares to us, that 
he has made a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, 
and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world. That 
there is, therefore, " no condemnation to them who are in 
Christ Jesus;" but that to him that truly "believeth in 
Jesus, his faith is counted for righteousness;" he being "of 
God made" to the believer, "wisdom, and righteousness, and 
sanctification, and redemption." He assures us, that every 
human being, however guilty, stands acquitted before God, 
when he is brought to genuine repentance and real trust 
in Christ the Saviour. That such an one, for the Re- 
deemer's sake, is accepted as a dear child, by God as a 
reconciled Father, and is admitted to the liberty and peace 
of God's dear children. 

The tidings of the gospel, also, tell us, my friends, that 
with the free gift of pardon through Christ, to the contrite 
and confiding soul, there is given a dispensation of the 
Spirit, to be improved in prayerful obedience towards the 



416 SERMON XXXV. 

sanctification of the character, the growth of the soul in 
grace, and the knowledge of its Saviour, and the final vic- 
tory of the redeemed, in coming off more than conquerors 
through him that loved them and gave himself for them. 

Such news, of a wonderful and all sufficient way of par- 
don and favour, renewal, and strength, and victory at last, 
the gospel brings, from the far country of God's eternal 
habitation, to us, strangers and pilgrims, who are soon 
to be summoned from our present dwelling place, to return 
no more. 

In the good news of the gospel, we hear, besides, of 
mercies. It tells us of the tender love of our heavenly 
Father towards his accepted children Of the faithful 
kindness of our merciful Saviour, towards all that come 
unto God by him. Of the guiding presence of that spirit 
which enlightens the blind, strengthens the weak, raises 
the fallen, brings back the wandering, helps the tempted, 
comforts the sad, and to the struggling gives the victory. 

And the tidings of the gospel, my friends, what precious 
light do they throw on the darkness of death and the pros- 
pect of eternity ! They bring to light, life and immortality. 
Jesus, in his gospel, pledges his loving presence to his 
dying servants. And he promises to give them after death 
a happy and eternal home with himself, in the heavenly 
mansions which he has gone before to prepare for them in 
his Father's house. 

These messages of mercy from God — these hopes set 
before us in the gospel of Christ ; is he not ready, through 
them, to pour light into your hearts, my friends ? Take the 
good news of the gospel into your hearts, and you will 
surely find, as was said by one of old, " the entrance of 



THE REFRESHING GRACE OF THE GOSPEL. 417 

thy word giveth light — it giveth understanding to the 
simple." Psalm cxix. 130. 

And these tidings of good things in the gospel — what 
comfort can they shed in the dwellings of the poor ! in 
the chambers of mourning ! over the memory of the departed 
who sleep in the Lord ! and over all the troubled pathway 
of each traveller to eternity ! 

Do you not see, my friends, do you not feel, that the 
gospel of Christ is, indeed, "good news from a far 
country!" 

II. The text tells you that "good news from a far 
country," is like "cold waters to a thirsty soul." And as 
you have seen how truly the gospel is "good news from a 
far country," let me get you to look at it now, "as cold 
waters to a thirsty soul." 

You must remember, then, that the blessings of reli- 
gion, are often said in God's word, to be like refreshing 
water. And the desires of the soul for these blessings, are 
said to be like the feeling of thirst. David said, " as the 
hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul 
after thee, God." And, again, "my soul thirsteth for 
thee, the living God." By the prophet Isaiah, also, God 
gives this invitation : " Ho ! every one that thirsteth, come 
ye to the waters !" And in the last chapter in the Bible, 
the Lord invites again, "let him that is athirst, come, and 
whosoever will let him take the water of life freely!" 
And the blessed Jesus, with his own lips, spake these words, 
"if any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink." 
The scriptures, then, every where, show you that the 
blessings of religion are like " cold waters to the thirsty 
soul." And you may learn how to get and use these bless- 
ings, by attending a little further to the text — " as cold 



418 SERMON XXXV. 

waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far 
country !" 

Take notice, therefore, it is to the thirsty soul that 
cold waters are refreshing. Of what use are the most de- 
licious fountains running in all their freshness, to him who 
has no thirst, that he should desire or relish them ? And 
so you know it is said, " let him that is athirst, come and 
take of the water of life freely." And the promise is, 
" blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteous- 
ness, for they shall be filled." 

You may see, then, to whom the good news of pardon, and 
help, and comfort, and victory, and salvation, brought by 
our blessed Lord in his gospel from the far country of 
God's heavenly kingdom, to whom the " good news, from 
a far country," will be " as cold waters to a thirsty soul." 

It can only be to those who have in their hearts desires 
after God as real as the feeling of thirst. It can only be 
to such as receive God's word, and yield to his spirit ; who 
have true convictions of conscience, and a sincere sorrow 
for sin ; who see how much misery sin brings in this world ; 
and who feel what an awful thing it is to die in sin, and 
meet in judgment an oifended God ; who have some right 
feelings of their guilt and their danger. It can only be to 
those who, thus feeling, truly long for grace and salvation, 
through Christ ; who give sincere attention to the instruc- 
tions of his gospel, who attend to his directions and his 
promises, who pray for the holy spirit, and try to cherish 
his presence in their hearts by holiness of life ; who ex- 
amine themselves, looking back to mourn over past sins, 
and forward to prepare to meet God ; who consider and 
meditate, who watch and pray lest they should enter into 
temptation ; who give themselves up to the Lord Jesus to 



REFRESHING GRACE OP THE GOSPEL. 419 

serve him and to be saved by him ; who trusting and loving 
him, make it their great care to follow his example while 
they live, and hope when they die to depart and be with 
him. 

As " good news from a far country"- is like " cold waters 
to the thirsty soul," so it is only they who are in earnest 
in seeking the grace and salvation of Christ, who will find 
the gospel to be, indeed, good news, and the blessings of 
religion like refreshing waters. 

And here you see how it is, that so many care but 
little for the good news from that far country. 

While " the pleasures of sin for a season" fill the mind ; 
while the things of time and sense occupy the heart ; when 
scarcely any attention is paid to the soul, its guilt and its 
danger ; while life is foolishly thought of as long and safe, 
and the deceived heart drinks freely of the fountains of 
vanity and sin ; where all this is going on, the pure waters 
of life are held of but little account. There is no thirsting 
for righteousness in the soul. Not till there are deep ex- 
ercises of heart, and the soul comes to feel its wretchedness 
and ruin away from Christ; not till experience of truth is 
had from God's word, and spirit, and providence ; and not 
till genuine spiritual desires are thereby stirred up, so that 
there is a real hungering and thirsting after righteousness, 
and the person can truly say, my soul is athirst for God, 
yea, even for the living God ; not till then are the blessings 
of religion relished, " as cold waters to a thirsty soul." 

And my friends, when you find that no such feelings are 
stirred within you, that there are no such desires in your 
hearts for God's grace and salvation, you may be assured 
it is a fearful case. Remember the warning, "Wo to 
them that are at ease in Zion!" You know how it was 



420 SERMON XXXV. 



with a worldly man of whom our Saviour tells, who called 
in vain for a drop of water in the place of torment ! Not 
to thirst after righteousness, so as to seek supplies from the 
fountain of life here, is sure to be followed by eternal thirst 
in that region of suffering hereafter. 

But you must bear in mind, my friends, that it is not 
only to him who thirsts, but to him who, when athirst, 
drinks the furnished water, that it is refreshing. In vain 
may the sparkling fountain pour its pleasant waters by the 
wayside, for the thirsty traveller, if he stoop not to the 
stream, and take the fresh supply, and drink it freely as 
he needs. He may look upon the fountain in its beauty ; 
he may think it would be delicious to the taste ; he may 
even long for it with the greatest thirst ; but all this 
will not supply his need. Nothing will do, short of actually 
drinking the water. He must drink, if he would be re- 
freshed. And so is it, my friends, with the blessings of 
religion. You may see that they are good and valuable. 
You may admire them, and wish for them. You may even 
painfully feel the need of them. And yet all this cannot 
make your souls partake the blessings of salvation. No. 
You must actually receive Jesus Christ as your own Sa- 
viour. You must submit and give yourselves up to him. 
You must learn from his word, and regulate yourselves by 
his directions. You must trust to him and cling to him, 
expecting to be saved only by his blood, his merit, his 
power, and his love. The Holy Spirit you must seek always 
in prayer, and in trying with care to keep God's command- 
ments. And it must be your daily purpose "to bring every 
thought and intent of your hearts in captivity to obedience 
to Christ." The thirsty soul must thus drink of the foun- 
tain of the water of life, and drink freely, to be refreshed 



led 






REFRESHING GRACE OE THE GOSPEL. 421 

and nourished into everlasting life. You must thus do as 
invited. a Let him that is athirst come, and whosoever 
will, let him take of the water of life freely." And again : 
" If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink." 

No respect for religion will serve you, my friends. No 
general desires can save you. No wishes, no longings even, 
for peace and heaven. No ! You must each of you for 
yourselves, really receive God's word ; accept Jesus Christ 
as your own Saviour ; obtain the grace of the Holy Spirit, 
and give up yourselves to God in loving obedience. You 
must so really drink for yourselves of the waters of life, or 
nothing can save you from perishing in the pain of thirst 
which can never be relieved. 

But, brethren, as you have seen, when the traveller, 
parched with thirst, worn out and ready to perish, finds 
before him the cool fountain, and stooping to its waters 
takes thereof, and freely drinks them in their freshness, 
how delightful is the draught ! It is sweet to his soul ; 
and he is strengthened and encouraged to travel on. 

So is it with the soul concerned for sin, anxious for eter- 
nity, and exposed to ruin. "When athirst for God and 
longing for salvation, it receives God's word as truth and 
wisdom ; it accepts and relies on Jesus Christ in all his 
offices as its own Saviour ; it seeks in prayer, and in obe- 
dience cherishes the grace of the Holy Spirit. When 
athirst, it really drinks of the waters of life ; then truly 
is satisfaction given. Then is the soul renewed in spiritual 
health. And, 0, if it be so with you, my friends, you may 
in peace go on in the narrow way of life, '•' rejoicing in 
hope of the glory of God." 

The " good news from that far country" thus received, 
acted on, and lived by, 0, my friends, how truly is it in- 

06 



422 SERMON XXXV. 

tended to be, how surely is it found to be, " as cold waters 
to a thirsty soul!" To him who thus partakes these waters 
of life, how delightful they are, how refreshing, how nour- 
ishing unto everlasting life ! 

Behold a servant of Christ, who so receives the good 
news from that far country, who so in his thirst drinks of 
the waters of life ! 

Is he cast down under a sense of sin, under the solemn 
expectation of soon meeting a holy God ? The blood and 
righteousness of his Saviour are all-sufficient. Is he dis- 
tressed by temptation, and by the experience of the weak- 
ness and deceitfulness of his own heart ? The Holy Spirit 
is abundantly able to strengthen and purify that heart, and 
is promised to be given in answer to his prayers. 

Is he bowed down under bereavement and sorrow ? The 
comforter is pledged to him, and the kind presence of " a 
friend that sticketh closer than a brother." 

Has he a burden to carry of anxious cares ? His Lord 
says, " Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy 
laden, and I will give you rest !" 

Are his earthly comforts few, his earthly hopes broken ? 
He knows of a better hope, " a good hope through grace," 
which is "as an anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast," 
made secure in heaven. 

Does sickness come, giving warning of the last sum- 
mons ? He receives it as a message from his Father. 

Are the beloved of his heart taken from his presence ? 
He can yield them up to their rightful Lord — their God 
and Saviour. 

Comes death to himself? He meets it as the call of 
mercy ; knowing that whatever servant of the Lord can 
truly say, "for me to live is Christ," may with confidence 



REFRESHING GRACE OF THE GOSPEL. 423 

add, "to die is gain!" because it is to that servant "far 
better to depart and be with Christ." And therefore, he 
can depart in peace, whispering with his latest breath the 
prayer of Stephen, " Lord Jesus receive my spirit." 

0, my friends, be you thus in earnest to make your own — 
the blessings of the gospel. Seek and secure the great pri- 
vileges offered by the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will find 
how true it is in life and in death, in time and in eternity, 
of this grace and this salvation. 

"As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from 
a far country." 

CM. 

There is a fountain filled with blood, 

Drawn from Immanuers veins, 
And sinners plunged beneath that flood, 

Lose all their guilty stains. 

The dying thief rejoiced to see 

That fountain in his day ; 
And there may I, as vile as he, 

"Wash all my sins away. 

Dear, dying Lamb, thy precious blood 

Shall never lose its power, 
Till all the ransomed church of God 

Be saved, to sin no more. 

E'er since, by faith, I saw the stream 

Thy flowing wounds supply, 
Redeeming love has been my theme, 

And shall be till I die. 

Then, in a nobler, sweeter song, 

I'll sing thy power to save ; 
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue 

Lies silent in the grave. 



424 SERMON XXXV. 

Questions. — 1. To a traveller in the desert what is most delightful? 

2. What makes glad a stranger's heart when he is far from home? 

3. Are we not pilgrims in this word, of sin, like a traveller in the de- 
sert ? 4. And are not the blessings of religion like cold waters to a 
thirsty soul? 5. Are we not strangers here, far from our heavenly 
home ? 6. And is not the gospel of Christ good news to us from that far 
country ? 7. Repeat the text therefore, and tell what two great things 
may he learned from it? 8. Is not every sinful heart far from God ? 
9. Does not a holy God remove far off from guilty men? 10. Is not 
the world to which we are going very different from this, and so a 
far country? 11. Are not men in their sins very far from being fit 
for heaven ? 12. May not the careless sinner, then, be very near to 
hell? 13. Is it not good news, when the gospel tells us of the pardon 
of sin through Christ ? 14. And when it promises to the praying 
soul the grace of the Holy Spirit? 15. When it makes sure comfort 
in God to his servants while they live, and heaven when they die ? 
16. Repeat some Scriptures about the waters of life, and thirsting for 
them? 17. Can any then expect the blessings of grace without seek- 
ing them, as a thirsty man seeks water ? 18. Are people likely to 
thirst for the waters of life, when they are indulging in sin ? 19. As 
a thirsty man must really drink to be refreshed, so must not you not 
only desire, but really get grace from your Saviour? 20. And when 
a sinner so comes to live by faith in Christ, and drinks of the waters 
of life, does he not find comfort, and peace, and victory at last ? 



SERMON XXXVI. 

THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR 
A CROWN. 

BY THE REV. T. T. CASTLEMAN. 

Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. — 
Rev.— ii. 10. 

A GREAT many years ago there was a very wicked and 
cruel king, whose name was Domitian. He hated all who 
loved the Lord Jesus Christ. Many of them he put to 
death in the most bloody and barbarous manner. In those 
days there was a good and holy man whose name was John. 
He was a disciple of Jesus. He had loved and served him 
from his youth. He had preached the gospel and done 
great good in the name of Jesus. For these reasons, this 
wicked king thought to put him to death. So he had him 
brought before him, and, as some say, cast into a cauldron 
of boiling oil. But he came out of it unhurt, and praised 
Grod for his goodness and love. This good old disciple of 
Jesus, was then nearly ninety years old. The king seemed 
afraid to try again to put him to death ; yet to stop the 
good he was doing, he drove him from his country, he ap- 
pointed him his home in a lonely little island, far off in the 
stormy sea, called the island of Patmos. St. John had no 

(425) 



426 SERMON XXXVI. 

Christian friends there. There were none to meet with him 
in prayer and praise to God. But he was not alone. God, 
whom he served, did not leave him alone. He followed him 
there across the wide waters. He watched over him by 
night, and by day. He cheered and comforted him in all 
his trials. He communed with him, and taught him many 
glorious truths about heaven, and the saints in glory. He 
gave him visions of the new Jerusalem — of the heavenly 
world — of the angels around his throne — of the saints in 
glory, and of the crowns and the kingdoms that are laid up 
in store for all Christians who will continue faithful unto 
death. St. John wrote down all these things, and made a 
book of them. That book, God has handed down to us. It 
is the last book in the Bible, and is called the book of 
" Revelation." 

Christians are not hated and persecuted now, for Christ's 
sake, as they were then. We are not hunted down, and 
put to death now, as they were then for believing in Jesus. 
But still we have our battles to fight, and a dangerous fight 
it is, too. The early Christians had to fight against the 
frowns and storms of the world. We have to fight against 
its smiles. Satan came to them, as a roaring lion,~pant- 
ing and raging for their blood. But he comes to us as an 
angel of light, persuading, and flattering us by high pro- 
mises. They had to fight against flesh and blood ; but we 
fight against principalities and powers, and the rulers of 
the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in 
high places. Jesus the Redeemer of sinners, who watched 
over St. John in the island of Patmos, knew that these would 
be our dangers. So he directed St. John to write us these 
encouraging and comforting words. " Be thou faithful unto 
death, and I will give thee a crown of life." Now do you 



THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR A CROWN. 427 

ask me "how shall I be faithful ? " With the help of God, 
I will try and tell you. 

1. You must be faithful in your love to Christ, I was 
roused from my sleep one night by the cry of fire. On 
going. to the place I found an immense crowd in the greatest 
excitement and alarm. Presently a cry was heard through 
the crowd, that a woman and child were in the third story, 
and could not make their escape. The flames were burst- 
ing out of the windows, and the building seemed to be all 
on fire. No one seemed willing to risk his life to save the 
poor woman. At last, a man of mild, but determined and 
serious face, came forward and asked what room she was in. 
In a moment he seized an axe, and rushed forward to save 
her. He entered the room where she was. She pressed 
her child to her bosom, and had given up to die. But he 
said to her, " follow me," he then cut his way through the 
house, and brought her down in safety. How did that 
woman feel towards this man who had saved her from so 
dreadful a death ? She fell upon her knees in gratitude 
before him. She offered him all she had. She never forgot 
him. She praised and blessed him wherever she went. 
And should not every Christian's heart burn with warm and 
grateful love towards Jesus the Redeemer of sinners. For 
only think what flames of suffering and persecution he went 
through, to save us from the fires of God's eternal wrath. 
He knew before he entered on the work of saving our souls, 
that he would have to fight against the power of devils, that 
he would have to pass through sufferings, such as man 
jiever passed through before, and never shall pass through 
again. And yet he came willingly and joyfully, and bore 
it all for our sakes. Show me the professing Christian who 
1 can look at the scenes of his death, and think of the sun 



428 SERMON XXXVI. 

hiding himself, the heavenly Father turning away the smiles 
of his face from him, his own body fainting and dying on 
the cross, the earth trembling, the rocks torn in pieces, and 
Jesus, the bleeding and crucified Saviour, crying out, "My 
God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ?" Show me the 
professing Christian, I say, who can look at these scenes, 
and not say, 

" Love so amazing, so divine, 
Demands my life, my soul, my all," 

and I will show you one who is not faithful in his love to 
Christ. I will show you one who is not worthy of the 
" crown of life." 

2. You should be faithful in all things, and through all 
your life to Christ. "Be thou faithful unto death." Your 
faithfulness should not, like the moon, shine brightly some- 
times and then wane away and disappear. It should con- 
tinue shining steady until death. "When a man enlists as 
a soldier in the army, he is held solemnly bound for the 
whole time that was agreed upon. You who profess to be 
the soldiers of Jesus Christ, have enlisted in the army of 
heaven. You have promised to fight against the world, 
the flesh and the devil, not for a day or a month ; but for 
your whole lives — to " continue Christ's faithful soldiers 
and servants unto your life's end." You have gone in for 
the whole war. When a soldier is in the heat of battle he 
may cast back a wishful heart to the home of his youth 
and the wife and children of his bosom. But if he deserts, 
or runs off, he may be shot as a traitor. But you, having 
set out for heaven, are not at liberty to look back. If you 
do you are not fit for the kingdom of heaven. You are to 
press onward. You must not stop striving and fighting 






THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR A CROWN. 429 

You have no time to waste in resting on jour arms. You 
must not put on religion as a soldier sometimes puts on his 
uniform to show his bright buttons and his shining feathers. 
But jou must put it on as something to be used in your 
warfare against all the enemies of God. 

But, 0, how many professing Christians have I seen who 
seemed to think they have nothing to do ! — no battles to 
fight ! I have seen men come up to the church of God, and 
tell there what they had felt and what they meant to 
do, and enlist in the army of God's people, and say how 
bravely they intended to fight for heaven. Then, I have 
seen them go into the world and mix in with the enemies 
of God and never fight a single battle for his name. They 
would put -on the shining epaulets of profession, and bran- 
dish the flaming sword of outward form, and look as if they 
were ready to fight the whole world of God's enemits with 
Satan at their head, and then, after all, turn the whole 
scene into a mere schoolboys' muster. When they were 
in the world they were just like other people. They were 
led off by every silly pleasure. They gave way in every 
time of temptation. And at last they went back and joined 
the ranks of the world again. Now is this what is meant 
by, "be thou faithful unto death?" If it is, then might 
the soldier say, that he had fought in the heat of every 
battle for his country, when he had done nothing more than 
answer to his name at the roll-calling, and come forward 
once a week to receive his rations. Such Christians as 
these can never receive the crown of life. 

Let me tell you how the good old Christians, in times long 
passed, used to be "faithful unto death." Ah! those were 
the times to try men's religion, when they were hunted 
down and burnt at the stake for their faithfulness to 



430 SERMON XXXVI. 

Christ. At the time that St. John wrote the encouraging 
promise of the text, there was a good old man who had 
served his heavenly Master more than eighty years. He 
was a bishop of the church, and his name was Polycarp. 
He was charged before the governor, of the country, with 
being a disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ. When he was 
brought up to be tried, the question was asked him, " are 
you Polycarp?" With a mild, but decided voice, he said, 
" I am." The governor then said to him, " have pity on 
thine own great age — swear by the fortunes of Caesar — « 
repent — say, take away these atheists," meaning the 
Christians. Polycarp turned his eyes slowly over the 
crowd around him. Then he waved his hand and looked 
up to heaven, and said, take away these atheists," meaning 
the wicked people who hated him. The governor said again, 
"swear, and I will let thee go — curse Christ." Polycarp 
mildly said, " eighty and six years have I served him, and 
he never once forsook me." The governor said again, 
" swear by the fortunes of Csesar — worship the gods of 
Rome — curse thy Master Christ, and I will let thee go." 
The good old man lifted up his eyes upon the enraged 
crowd, and said, " how can I blaspheme my King who hath 
saved me." But this did not satisfy that blood-thirsty man. 
It did not move his heart to feelings of pity. Then the 
governor tried to frighten him into measures, said he, " I 
have wild beasts, I will throw you to them unless you 
repent and give up your stubbornness." For a moment, 
Polycarp trembled with horror as if he were already in 
the jaws of the hungry tiger. But in an instant he be- 
came calm, and looking up to his judge, he said, "call 
them, 1 am ready." Once more the judge said to him, "I 
will tame thy spirit by fire." But his threats did not 



THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR A CROWN. 431 

alarm this well-tried disciple of Jesus. Here Polycarp 
undertook to preach to him as St. Paul did before the Ro- 
man governor, when he reasoned with him " of righteous- 
ness, temperance, and judgment to come." "You threaten 
me," said Polycarp, "with the fire which burns only for a 
moment ; but are yourself ignorant of the fire of eternal 
punishment in store for the ungodly." With this they took 
the good old man and bound him to a stake, and piled the 
wood around him, and set it on fire. As the fire kindled 
around him, he lifted up his voice in prayer to God, in the 
hearing of all the people, and said, " Father of thy be- 
loved and blessed Son Jesus Christ ! God of all princi- 
palities and of all creation, I bless thee that thou hast 
counted me worthy of this day and this hour to receive my 
portion in the cup of Christ. I praise thee for all these 
things. I bless thee — I glorify thee by the eternal High 
Priest Jesus Christ thy beloved Son, through whom and 
with whom in the Holy Ghost be glory to thee both now 
and for ever." 

This is the way that the old time Christians were faithful 
unto death. They could not be made to deny Christ either 
by their language or their conduct. Hundreds of them 
sealed their love for Christ with their blood. While the 
wicked crowd gazed on that burning pile, the spirit of the 
good old man went up to the joys of heaven. While they 
rent the air with their shouts of cursing and triumph, the 
spirit of the good old man joined in the songs of the angels 
of heaven, and put on the crown of life to wear it for ever, 
as the reward of his faithfulness in the cause of his Master. 

There is no fear, my friends, that you will ever be burnt 
at the stake for your love to Christ. But an hour is coming 
when you will need the same heavenly support that God 



432 SERMON XXXVI. 

gave to Polycarp. Old age or disease will soon come upon 
you. Your strength will fail — your eyes grow dim — your 
hold on life weakened. Then you will need an arm to help 
you. You will need a hope beyond the grave to comfort 
you. You will need a light to guide you through the dark 
valley of death. Only be faithful unto death, and then all 
will be well with you. Jesus your Saviour will welcome 
you. With his own hands he will place on your head the 
crown of eternal life. 

I cannot tell you what this crown of life is now. You 
know that to wear a crown in this world is the highest 
honour a man can receive here* When a man has got up 
to this he feels that he has reached the highest point of 
worldly glory. When our Lord says to Christians, "I will 
give thee a crown of life," he means he will give them the 
highest honours of heaven. He will give them pure and 
holy, and unending enjoyments at his right hand. He will 
take them away from all poverty, and want, and pain, and 
trouble, and place them where all tears shall be wiped from 
their eyes, and where they shall live and rejoice for ever with 
God. To wear an earthly crown,, men have waded through 
rivers of human blood. They have spent their lives in the 
hardest labour to fit themselves to wear this crown. Then 
after they have put it on their heads, they have found its 
troubles too heavy for them to bear. It did not satisfy them 
They wanted something higher and better. An earthly crown 
can never fill up the wants of an immortal soul. Nothing 
can ever make a man really happy but the crown of eter 
nal life. The crown of life will bring you the purest and 
happiest enjoyments. When your trials and warfare are 
over here — when you have made your escape from the temp 
tations of Satan, your spirits will go up to dwell among 



THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR A CROWN. 433 

that unnumbered company of angels who stand around the 
throne of God. If you have been faithful unto death, he 
will place, with his own hands, the crown of life on your 
head. He will say to you, "well done good and faithful 
servant." 0, what a day that will be to you! You will be 
taken up from this world of temptation, and sin, and sick- 
ness, and labour, and trouble, and death, to a world of 
glory where none of these things can come. Only think 
of this. You shall go from poverty to riches — from labour 
to rest — from sorrow to happiness — from death to life. 
You shall meet there with all the saints of God around 
his throne. You shall there shake hands, and sit down 
in the kingdom, with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, 
and all the prophets and apostles. You shall see and know 
Jesus who was crucified for you. You think you are now 
very ignorant. There are many th^igs in the Bible you 
cannot understand. But every thing will be made plain 
and clear to you then. You are servants here. But God 
tells us, you shall be made kings and priests there. You 
shall take part in the songs of angels. You will look back 
on all the way you have passed through in this world of 
sorrow — and then you will lift up your heart to God, and 
say, glory and honour be "unto him who hath loved us and 
washed us in his own blood, and made us kings and priests 
unto God for ever." A minister of God once called to see 
a great man who was on his death bed. He had fought 
many battles for his country — had killed many men in war. 
His name had been published from one end of the land to 
the other — wherever he went thousands of people gathered 
round him to see him and shake him by the hand. This 
man had all the honour the world could give him. This 
man was about to die. But he had no hope in Jesus — no 

37 



434 SERMON XXXVI. 

honour laid up in heaven. As the minister stood by his 
bed side, he looked at him, and said, " it is a solemn and 
fearful thing to die. To be torn from this world where I 
have so many friends — where I enjoy so much honour, and 
to go away into the lonely grave, and into a world of which 
I know nothing, is, indeed, fearful. The physicians did all 
they could to save him. His friends gathered round his 
bed and tried to encourage him. But the time had come 
for him to lay down his honours and his glory. His life 
gradually faded away. He spoke not a word of Jesus, or 
of heaven, or of the crown of life. But just before his 
death, he said, " I have tried to do my duty and I am not 
afraid to die." This was all the testimony he had to give. 
The rich men, and the wise men, and the great men 
gathered round his dead body and carried it away to the 
grave. Thousands followed in the train. The churches 
and public halls were clothed in mourning, cannon 
were fired in honour to him, and a whole world seemed to 
be in mourning. But this great man left all his honours 
behind. When death came he had to lay down his crown to 
wear it no more. His name and great deeds will be written 
in books for men to read, but he will know nothing of it. 
The world may go on to praise him. But if he has no 
honour with God he is wretched, indeed. The minister 
went from his grave to the sick room of a poor slave. He, 
too, was on the brink of eternity. The minister asked him 
of his hopes for heaven. " 0, sir," said he, "Jesus is my 
all in all. For more than forty years have I tried to serve 
him, in my poor, imperfect way. I would not now give his 
favour for all the world. I have never done any thing in 
the world worth mentioning. There is nothing good in me. 
All my trust is in Jesus. I sometimes think I can see him 






THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR A CROWN. 435 

near my bed. When I am all alone here of nights, Jesus, 
my Saviour, seems to come and whisper to my heart, 'be 
not afraid, it is I. I will take care of you. When I come 
I will unbolt the doors of your prison of clay, and take 
your spirit up to glory. Then I will give you the crown of 
life.' " In a few days the minister was sent for to bury this 
good and faithful old servant of God. On reaching his 
cabin, he found a few servants who had assembled to carry 
him away to the grave — and a plain coffin which some one 
had been kind enough to have made. No crape was worn 
— no tears were shed — no cannon were fired, as some eight 
or ten persons bore him away to the grave yard. Not a 
newspaper in all the land said a word of his death, or even 
heard that such a man had lived and died. But his honour 
was on high. Angels came and bore him away rejoicing 
to heaven. Ten thousand saints welcomed him before the 
throne of God. As he went up to the mansions of eternal 
rest, the music of heaven fell on his ear — the grandeur 
of eternity burst upon his eye, and as he made his first 
effort to join in the songs of that happy company, he, no 
doubt, said in his heart, " the sufferings through which I 
have passed are not worthy to be compared with the glory 
which is now revealed in me." 

My friends, the time is short, and you and I, too, shall 
lie down in death. Then we shall go up to the judgment 
bar of the great God. We shall see his throne and meet 
him face to face. 0, how shall we look upon that throne ! 
How shall we stand before that face ! We must meet at 
that terrible bar. We must tell there of our privileges- 
our warnings — mercies — resolutions — vows. We must hear 
the sentence, "depart ye cursed into everlasting fire;" or 
the welcome, " come ye blessed,'' receive the crown of 



43d SERMON XXXVI. 

eternal life, " ye have been faithful over a few things, 1 
will make you rulers over many things." My dear friends, 
if I had but one more word to say to yon, it should be, 
" Be thou faitful unto death, and I will give thee a crown 
of life." 

But I cannot let you go without telling you something 
to encourage your faithfulness, and to persuade you not to 
weary in well doing. 

Several ministers of the gospel were once dining 
together. Among them was the Bev. Mr. Whitfield and 
the Bev. Mr. Tennent. Mr. Whitfield had laboured long 
and faithfully in the service of his Master. He spoke of 
the trials and labours of the ministry of Christ. He said, 
he seemed with all his zeal to do but little. Then, said he, 
" I am weary with the burdens of the day. I am greatly 
cheered whenever I think that, in a short time my work 
will be done, and I shall go and be with Christ." He then 
turned to the other ministers and asked them, if they did 
not feel so too ? They all said, " yes," except one. That 
one was Mr. Tennent. He sat in silence, and seemed to 
take no pleasure in the conversation. At last, Mr. Whit- 
field tapped him on the knee, and said, "well, brother 
Tennent, you are the oldest man among us; do you not 
rejoice to think that your time is so near at hand, when 
you shall be called home?" Mr. Tennent answered, "I 
have no wish about it." Mr. WMtfield still pressed it upon 
him — " have you no pleasure in thinking of it ?" Mr. Ten- 
nent answered, "no, sir, it is no pleasure to me at all, and 
if you knew your duty it would be none to you. I have 
nothing to do with death. My business is to live as long 
as I can — as well as I can, and to serve my Master as faith- 
fully as I can until he shall think proper to call me home." 






THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN SHALL WEAR A CROWN. 437 

Mr. Whitfield then said, " suppose the time of your death 
was left to your own choice, would you not soon have it 
over ? Mr. Tennent answered, " I have no choice about it. 
I am God's servant, and have promised to do his business 
as long as he pleases to keep me in it." Then said Mr. 
Tennent again, " now, brother Whitfield, let me ask you a 
question. What do you think I would say if I was to send 
my man into the field to plough, and at noon should go into 
the field and find him lounging under a- tree, and he should 
say to me, ' master, the sun is very hot, the ploughing is 
very hard, I am tired of the work you have put me at, and 
overdone with the heat and the burden of the day. Do, 
master, let me go home and be free from this hard service.' 
What would you say?" Why, answered Mr. Whitfield, 
" I should say that he was a lazy fellow — that it was his 
business to do the work that had been appointed him until 
you should think fit to call him home." 

So with us, my friends, we must not become wearied 
with our work in the service of Christ. We must go on 
with our faithfulness through trials, and temptations, and 
hardships, until the Master says, " come home, thou hast 
been faithful unto death — I will give thee a crown of life." 

C. M. 

Am I a soldier of the cross, 

A follower of ihe Lamb ? 
And shall I fear to own his cause, 

Or blush to speak his name ? 

Shall I be carried to the skies, 

On flowery beds of ease ? 
While others fought to win the prize, 

And sailed through bloody seas. 

27* . 



438 SERMON XXXVI. 

Are there no foes for me to face, 

Must I not stem the flood ? 
Is this vain world a friend to grace, 

To help me on to God ? 

Sure I must fight, if I would reign, 

Increase my courage Lord I 
I'll bear the toil, endure the pain, 

Supported by thy word. 

Thy saints in all this glorious war 

Shall conquer though they die ; 
They see the triumph from afar, 

By faith they bring it nigh. 

When that illustrious day shall rise, 

And all thy armies shine, 
In robes of victory through the skies, 

The glory shall be thine. 

Questions. — 1. How was St. John treated by the enemies of God? 
2. How did God honour him ? 3. Have all Christians to bear trials ? 
4. What does Jesus tell them here to do? 5. What promise does 
he make them ? 6. How must Christians be faithful to Christ ? 7. 
Will it do to be faithful for a year or so, and then turn away from 
Christ? 8. Who was Polycarp? 9. How was he treated? 10. 
How did he behave himself? 11. Was he faithful unto death? 12 
When will all of us need such faithfulness ? 



3 47 7 



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Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: Oct. 2005 

PreservationTechnologies 

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 

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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




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